Toh Shin Den III: Walking Into Ruin
by Athena Asamiya
Summary: A new organization arises from the ashes of the Himitsu Kessha, and once again, amidst new allies and enemies, the Toshindaibukai warriors must fight to prevent the resurrection of the God of Fight itself. Based off of Toshinden 3.
1. Prologue: Prelude III

  
_Author's Notes_ (2002.04.22)

  
...And now we come to the final fanfic in the Toshinden Fanfiction Trilogy, and the final step on the fanficly journey of our favorite fighters. ^_^ (Well, the final step for a few of them, anyway...but I can't say anymore about that, heh ^_~) 

This one turned out to be, I think, the most dramatic of all the Toshinden fics I've written...like TSDII, I wrote the last four chapters or so completely on my own (my sister's original climax/ending was VERY different), and I'm very happy with the way they turned out. To this day, with the exception of the infamous Psychopomp, I still don't think I've written anything quite so dramatically emotional. Really. I still remember having readers e-mail me to tell me how much they cried when they finished it. So there you go, Kleenex warning. XD It IS a rather extreme ending, but that's just what I wanted out of it... 

So once you're finished here, you can either stop or go on to read the continuation fanfic, Toh Shin Den IV: Legends Never Die, which takes place ten years after the end of this fic. Trust me, if you read that one and then read this one again, I think you'll pick up much more of the irony in some of the dialogue and events... 

Anyway. Please enjoy. ^_^ 

~ _Athena Asamiya_ (nee Empress Katzy of Toshinden) 

* 

**- The Toshinden Fanfiction Trilogy -**

_ Toh Shin Den: To Challenge Fate  
Toh Shin Den II: Thicker Than Water  
Toh Shin Den III: Walking Into Ruin_

**- Successors to a Legacy -**

_ Toh Shin Den IV: Legends Never Die - The Pleiades Chapter_

  
  
Original Home: Athena Asamiya & Kasumi Todoh's Battle Arena Toshinden Fanfictions  
    http://www.geocities.com/Tokyo/Harbor/2472/tsdfic_contents.html  
Year of Original Publication: 2000 

  
  


* * *

** Part 3: **

- TOH SHIN DEN III: Walking Into Ruin - 

A Battle Arena Toshinden 3 fanfiction written by Kasumi Todoh and Athena Asamiya 

  
"What is clear is that something is going to happen.  
And at the same time, something is going to end.  
Everything will change...  
Waking up and walking the way into ruin."  
-- Tomoe Hotaru, _Bishoujo Senshi Sailormoon_

  
**Prologue: Prelude III**

  
_     The end of last year's tournament saw the end of the Himitsu Kessha at the hands of the main group of rebel warriors from the past tourney: Eiji Shinjo, Kayin Amoh, Sofia, Ellis, and Tracy. They were the only ones with enough will and courage to stand up to the evils of the Himitsu and their dark henchmen, and through their fighting skills and aided by two other hauntingly powerful fighters, a goddess named Cupido and Eiji's elder brother Sho, they were the foremost enemies of the Himitsu. Now that the Himitsu Kessha has been destroyed by them, the threat to our world is over.     Or is it...?     One year later, a new enemy has started to arise from the ashes.     They are only known as the Soshiki, a title similar to that of (and not to be confused with) the tournament organizers used so far. They worship an omnipotent being known as the 'Toshin', the Fighting God, Agon Teos. He is the true "Overlord of the Organization". To pay homage, the Soshiki makes blood sacrifices of selected warriors. And to create their own warriors, the Soshiki gives sacred blood of the Toshin to powerful yet evil fighters to make them close to invincible, training them in fighting styles to mirror those who have previously fought in the Toshindaibukai, as "countertypes". In order to release the Toshin to Earth, the Soshiki must find a fighter with a pure heart, capable of wielding the mighty power of Agon Teos, in order to bring absolute destruction to the Earth and its people. They are desperate to complete these unholy acts: to find the young boy named David whom them have chosen as the host body for the Toshin, to gather more blood sacrifices, and ultimately, to plunge the world into eternal darkness. This time, they vow to destroy the former fighters of the Toshindaibukai.     Only the Toshin warriors are not so easy to get rid of.     Knowing that their friends, families and world are all in danger, the heroes will have to go into the darkness once again, facing immortality-seeking warriors, sorrow, tragedy, violence and absolute betrayals on a mission to protect their new ally David and to restore order (and sanity) to an otherwise chaotic world, their journey taking them farther into the depths of ruin than ever thought possible. 

    In a story that is already an immortal legend, the final reckoning is about to begin. 

  


* * *

  
  


_


	2. Chapter One: Forewarned

**_In a world of darkness sanctioned by evil,  
where the only light of hope is a group of unlikely heroes,  
the legend's final chapter is about to begin..._**

**- TOH SHIN DEN III: Walking Into Ruin -**

_a Battle Arena Toshinden 3 fanfiction by Athena Asamiya and Kasumi Todoh_

  
**CHAPTER ONE: Forewarned**   
  
**Translations:**     _ne_ - word used to ask for agreement to the statement made     _-san_ - honourific used for respect; somewhat like our "Miss" or "Mr."     _tasukete_ - help     _niisan_ - informal version of _oniisan_; elder brother     _konbanwa_ - good evening     _minna_ - everyone     _-kun_ - honourific used for respect towards colleagues; same as _-san_ but is used for younger people     _-chan_ - honourific used for children, pets, or close friends     _arigatou_ - thank you     _anou..._ - um...     _sumimasen_ - excuse me     _gomenasai_ - I'm sorry     _iie_ - no     _arigatou gozaimashita_ - same as _arigato_, but more polite and final   
  
  


***************

_ After fierce combat at the Toshinden tournament,  
the Secret Society was crushed.  
It seemed that the underworld tournament had fulfilled its purpose.  
But as the fighters returned to their everyday lives,  
a new enemy arose to confront them.  
An enemy that hungered after their blood..._

***************

  
    It was nighttime in a remote part of the city of Kyushu, in the southern region of Japan. A shadowy figure runs down the street and into an empty alleyway. A young woman, and on her face is a look of pure terror as she turns and looks behind her while gasping for breath and struggling for energy to keep moving. Suddenly she crashes headfirst into a trash can and falls to the ground with a small cry. The girl looks up at the young man standing over her. A man carrying a long sword with an evil smirk on his face.     "W-what do you want with me?" the girl quavers, her voice shaking. She turns around to run again, but finds her path blocked a slinky woman wielding a long bullwhip. She turns around again, hoping and praying for a possible escape, but only to see a young teenager standing in front of her, holding a pair of tube-like objects and giggling almost hysterically. She whirls the other way, only to see another young woman carrying two double-tonfa rods in her hands advancing on her. The girl whimpers piteously, and backs away, then trips and falls over again. The sword-bearing young man, apparently the leader of the group, smiles coldly. Cold and evil. "Don't worry. We won't hurt you if you give us the information."     "What information? What do you want?"     The woman sneers. "We need you to tell us where he is."     "Who? And why would I know?" she questions, shaking.     "You see, we know that you know," the youngest one says calmly, even after stopping his hyperactive laughter.     "Where is the one named David?" says the other young woman, twirling her rods relentlessly.     The man steps up to the girl and points his sword at her throat. "Talk. Or else."     "But...I don't..." the girl stammers, and then looks up. "Oh, I know! You're those warriors from the Toshindaibukai? Ne?"     The man smiles again. "Not quite." He motions to the other three, who were eagerly waiting for the hopeful command. "Kill her. Now."     Her last words were choked out. "Shizuku-san!! _Tasukete!!"_     She screams...

***************

    The roar of the motorcycle's engine drowned out every bit of the noises of the outside world, which was coming upon evening as it was, as it speeded along, unheeding of anything around it. As did the driver, his red-gold eyes focusing only on the dirt road and where he was headed next. Everything was tuned out to him; that is, except for that nagging flashback.

_     Niisan, what is destiny?     Why do you ask, Eiji?     It's just that...well...everyone says that you have a great destiny.     That is true.     How, niisan?     Eiji, it was destiny that gave me the sword. It will also be my destiny when I fight in the great tournament. It is your destiny to be my brother. And, one day, you will have a destiny as well.     I will?     Yes. Destiny is the wheel of unavoidable fate, that decides our ultimate goal in life, who we are, and what we are meant to be. Everyone has a destiny to live up to. That is all, Eiji.
_

    He shook his head, attempting to put it out of his mind. _That's over. It's over and done with. You decided to put that all behind you, remember?_ He sighed at his own thoughts, narrowing his eyes in determination. _I'm not living under niisan's shadow anymore. He's out of my life now, and it doesn't matter anymore. He's chosen his path, and I've chosen mine._     The motorcycle roared down the dusty road towards its destination. He smiled as he saw it appear in the distance: a large group of caravans, all parked together, the ornate colourful tents adorning the ground and bright ribbons flailing their tails in the air.     Inside the main tent, the teenage Ellis was in middle of one her more spectacular dance routines. As the star attraction of this gypsy dance troupe, dressed all in white chiffon with pink ribbons, the young eighteen-year-old certainly had a reputation for not disappointing the audiences. As she leapt into another cartwheel followed up by a backflip and a low spin, she quickly glanced toward the audience where she knew they were sitting. In the third row sat three people, one man and two women. The man was wearing a crimson red jacket with heavy armoured shoulder pads and a pair of dark black pants. His long blond hair was tied in a ponytail that was tucked inside the back of his jacket, and a small silver cross on a brown cord gleamed around his neck. One of the women was wearing a black leather jacket with gold buckles over a black leather bodysuit, with matching knee-high boots and gloves, her blond hair done up in a high ponytail. The other woman was in a green tube top and matching green denim shorts over top of a pair of black biking shorts, with a baseball cap turned backwards over her blue hair that was now cut short to above her shoulders. Now, to any who didn't know about the four's past together, then they would have naturally assumed that they were just ordinary people. Although this theory went out the window when the weapons were seen, in plain view. The man's sheathed sword hung at his hip, while the woman in leather carried a bullwhip and the one in green, a pair of tonfa. This sight was quite out of the ordinary to the rest of the public (most of which were trying to avoid eye contact with the three), but not to Ellis and anyone who had heard of their legendary escapades of "saving the world", so to speak. They were her friends in battle Kayin Amoh, the Scottish bounty hunter, Sofia, the Russian secret agent and dominatrix extreme, and Tracy, the violent-obsessive New Yorker cop. They were watching her with great interest, and a huge grin broke onto Ellis' face at the knowledge of it. She had invited them all to Japan specially herself, and felt it was her duty to give one of her best performances. Ellis had also invited another friend, Eiji Shinjo, who was practically the leader of the group, but so far she hadn't seen any sign of him.     It had been nearly a year since the group of friends had destroyed the evil underground crime organization known as the Himitsu Kessha. The fall of the organization also ended the weaponry tournament in which they had all met and become allies, the Toshindaibukai. Since there was no longer a tournament to participate in, everyone was more than happy to get back to their normal lives (or what could be considered normal for them). They all made sure to keep in touch, and get together once in a while, which was one of the main reasons why they were together that day. That, and coincidence that Ellis's gypsy band was on tour in Japan, and Tracy also had been sent to Japan on a police assignment.     Ellis started into her finale, a hand jump followed by a backflip and ending with another spin, striking an impressive pose at the end. When she had finished, she received a standing ovation, the trio cheering louder than all. Ellis was still grinning as she took a bow. Definitely one of her better performances.     After the show was over, the group gathered in the back of one of the trailers to catch up -- after all, it had been the first time they had seen each other since the previous year, 1995.     "I'm glad you all could make it," Ellis was saying with a hint of sadness, "but it's too bad Eiji-kun missed seeing me perform."     "Who said I missed it?" came a Japanese-tinged voice from near the door.     They all turned to look, knowing fully well who they would see. There stood a handsome young man with auburn hair done up in elaborate spikes, wearing a gold and red jacket and motorcycle pants. A long sword, in its sheath, hung from his belt. He winked and saluted the group. "Konbanwa, minna. It's been a while."     "Eiji-kunnnnnnnn!!!" Ellis ran forward, jumped, and threw her arms around him, laughing in her usual girlish manner. He smiled and hugged her back, holding her for just a bit longer than friends normally would, both enjoying the moment. "Good to see you again too, Ellis-chan."     "Glad you could make it," Kayin replied, placing a black-gloved hand on Eiji's shoulder. Eiji grinned, knowing that Kayin was trying not to be emotional, and hugged his best friend. "Kayin-chan, how are things?"     "Same old, same old. Go out every day, kick some more asses. The usual for the best bounty hunter in all of Her Majesty's Britain."     "Same old ego as well," Eiji whispered to the trio of girls. The three giggled, and Kayin looked mildly insulted, as he was apt to do.     "I arrived in time to see the last part of your act," Eiji said, turning to Ellis. "You were great. One of your best."     Ellis bowed enthusiastically. "Arigatou, Eiji-kun!" She was not naturally fluent in Japanese, but it was one of her main languages other than Hungarian and English, since both her father and mother had been Japanese as well. Ellis knew quite a fair bit of many other different languages too, on account of travelling so much -- she took some pride in that fact. As for Eiji, the two were very close, closer than anyone else in their clique of fighters. There was just something about both of them that did the other some good. Their relationship was nothing big, more of a mutual attraction, probably because of the rather large age gap between them.     The five talked for a few more minutes about the fights they had recently been in, old times, and new experiences, before they heard a quiet voice behind them. "Anou...sumimasen."     Everyone turned around to see a young woman standing behind them. No one had even heard her enter. The woman had brown hair in a ponytail and wore a brightly coloured and decorated kimono that was rather low-cut on one side. She was watching all of them with a curious look on her face. Ellis was the first to speak to her. "Gomenasai, but this area's restricted to all spectators."     At first, the woman bowed low to the group in respect, but then responded in a quiet voice. "I need your help."     Ellis nodded. "Sure. Are you lost? I can show you where the audience exit is."     The woman laughed. "No, it's nothing quite so simple as that, Ellis-san."     The dancer was taken aback. "How do you my name?"     "First of all, my name is Fuji Shizuku, a wandering gambler. And I know all about all of you. You are the ones that destroyed the Himitsu Kessha in the last Toshindaibukai, are you not?"     "Yeah, that's us," Eiji answered, getting up. "But how do you know all this? And what did you come to us for?"     "I came to request your help, and bring you a warning: the Soshiki is after you."     "An organization...?" Eiji murmured in confusion, trying to make sense of what she was saying. Hearing what Eiji said, Sofia broke into the conversation. "You are not making any sense whatsoever. We destroyed the Himitsu Kessha once and for all. They are, how you say, out of the picture."     Shizuku bowed her head, closing her eyes. "Iie. This is not the Himitsu Kessha. It's a different organization. One that was secretly at war with the Himitsu for many years. After the destruction of the Himitsu Kessha at the hands of you five, the Soshiki was free to do its bidding. It was their plan all along to crush the Himitsu Kessha, and I'm afraid your actions last year only helped them. But they are in no way grateful to you, as you might have guessed, and want to make sure that you don't do the same to them. Sinister as they are, they want to make sure you pose no threat to them.     "This organization is even more ruthless than the other one," Shizuku went on. "They are brutal killers, merciless and without feeling. They don't just target you, but your friends and families as well. Anything that will cause their enemies pain." She turned to Ellis. "They're already targeting your circus, Ellis. And they're also targeting your father."     Ellis drew in her breath and looked very pale.     Eiji stepped forward, looking quite concerned. "Does that mean my niisan is--"     Here, it was noticeable that Kayin flinched slightly, no doubt at the mention of Eiji's brother (for obvious reasons of his own), but Shizuku just shook her head. "They're not that stupid as to challenge your brother, Eiji-san."     "That's why I was sent to Japan," Tracy muttered, almost to herself. "My assignment was to investigate rumours of a new crime organization. But I never believed it, since we whupped the Himitsu's sorry ass last year."     "Actually, the Soshiki is after all fighters who took part in last year's tournament, not just you five."     "But HOW do you know all this?" Kayin asked, standing up in exasperation.     "The Soshiki worships a being called the Toshin. Agon Teos, the true overlord of their organization," Shizuku explained. "A few months ago, they tried to bring the Toshin to earth, using a young boy to serve as a host body for it. The boy escaped however, and soon after my younger brother brought him to me. The boy told me everything that he'd found out about the Soshiki.     "Now the Soshiki is after him," she continued sadly. "They want him back...to finish the ritual. The boy is staying with me at the moment, and so they are after me as well. That is why I came looking for you." Tears glistened in her dark red eyes. "They have already killed so many around me...just last night, the minions of the Organization murdered Sayuri, a good friend of mine...and why?" Shizuku shook her head angrily. "Because of me. They are all bloodthirsty monsters who must not win and must never be allowed to take this world. You are the only ones that can stop the Soshiki. So please, will you help us?" She looked at them with hope in her eyes taking the place of the tears.     The others looked at each other for a few moments before Eiji walked over and put a hand on her shoulder.     "Shizuku-san, I'd be glad to help you. We all would."     "Same here," Kayin added, tightening the collar of his jacket around his neck. "Looks like we're still a part of this."     Sofia joined them. "I, too, would like to finally destroy their evil being."     "So would I," Ellis replied, nodding in determination. "I couldn't bear to have the ones I care about most in danger."     "Well, Tracy?" Eiji asked her, the only person still sitting, and it looked as though she was deep in thought about her new 'assignment'. The question shook Tracy out of her own little world, and she answered sarcastically, "Hmph. If you guys think I'm going to just sit around here and miss out on all the ass-kickin', then you need to have your heads examined. Of course I'm in."     "Arigatou gozaimashita!" Shizuku cried enthusiastically, dropping in another low, respectful bow. "We're both very grateful."     Eiji turned away from the group for a moment, unnoticed, opening the flap of the tent and gazing out in the twilight sky. _Well, as much as I tried to separate from your path, niisan, it looks as if we may cross yet again._     Meanwhile, outside, none of the people passing by the trailer took much notice of the woman standing near the trailer door, despite the fact that she was clad in a slightly odd tight-fitting cat costume. The catwoman was trying to look nonchalant (not an easy task), or at least one of the performers, as she eavesdropped intently to the conversation that was going on inside. Upon hearing that Eiji and the others were going to help Shizuku, she let out a small gasp, hopped into the bushes and vanished into the forest behind the trailer.

**********


	3. Chapter Two: Meeting

**_In a world of darkness sanctioned by evil,  
where the only light of hope is a group of unlikely heroes,  
the legend's final chapter is about to begin..._**

**- TOH SHIN DEN III: Walking Into Ruin -**

_a Battle Arena Toshinden 3 fanfiction by Athena Asamiya and Kasumi Todoh_

  
**CHAPTER TWO: Meeting**   
  
**Translations:**     _hai_ - yes     _anou..._ - um...     _mina-san_ - everyone [polite]     _-sama_ - honourific used for people of higher authority, gods etc.   
  
  


******************

  
    "This totally blows!" steamed Tracy as she headed back to her resident police headquarters, the Tokyo Police Bureau, in her small rented jeep. It was mid-morning the next day, and she was currently fuming about a small aspect of her new case that she had not been told about until now. "I mean, dammit, I was lookin' to get away from the stress of New York, and now they have the nerve to saddle me with a goddamn _partner?!_ I've never needed a partner, and I don't wanna start now, thankyouverymuch, assholes!!" She pulled herself out of her complaining for a minute, then lightened up and started to laugh. "God, now I'm talkin' to myself! What would the others think?" _Oh yeah,_ she thought, _the 'others' are two sword-wielding boys, a nasty girl with a whip, and an almost-too-cute little girl. Damn, what was I thinkin'? We ain't no ordinary extermination squad. Or organization extermination squad._     Tracy grinned in spite of the situation she was now in. And the situation she had been in, both a year and two years ago, at the second tourney and the ever-fateful first one. At first, she didn't want to trust the others. After all, who would? But still, her cop's instinct had told her that there was something wrong about this tournament, and after a little research of her own coupled with Eiji, Kayin, Sofia, and Ellis's confirmation, Tracy was all too happy to help them take out the Himitsu Kessha once and for all.     Or so they had thought, at least.     And now that this crazy woman Shizuku (at least in Tracy's not-so-humble opinion) had showed up on the scene, evidence had started to point towards the fact that perhaps something was starting up again. And more of the pending evidence was the report of the young Tokyo woman, Nakatoshi Sayuri, who had disappeared the other night and found dead. The autopsy had shown that it was from numerous slashes from sharp weapons, as well as some burn marks that Tracy had identified herself as caused by ki blasts. A witness reported seeing five strange characters following her the other night, almost as if they were stalking the girl. _If only we had gotten some identification,_ Tracy thought in frustration, _Even some info on what they looked like would have helped!_     But, as it seemed, the five mysterious people had kept to the shadows, and it was presumed that they attacked the girl. Tracy mused to herself, _So what does this Soshiki thing want now?_ She tightened her grip on the steering wheel. _Guess it's up to New York's best cop to find out._ She briefly considered turning back, since Eiji and the others had gone with this Shizuku to confer with the boy who the people of the new organization were supposedly after. As Tracy pulled into the parking lot of the Police Bureau, she remorsefully thought, _Here goes nothing._ Tracy grimaced, brushed a few strands of her blue hair aside in order to look presentable, straightened her gaudy gold badge, and headed inside.     Finding her way around proved to be quite difficult, and asking for directions proved to be an even harder task, given Tracy's very limited Japanese vocabulary. Finally, she managed to find someone that understood English, who pointed her in the direction of a large office. Tracy knocked once, and heard a voice answer, "Hai!" which she was pretty sure meant it was okay to come in. The young policewoman entered, marveling at the room's eloquent furnishings of various Japanese paintings, assorted certificates, badges and the like. She approached a big oak desk in the center of the room and saluted, announcing, "Captain Tracy of the New York Police Department, reporting in for duty, sir."     The man sitting behind the desk turned around in his chair, and Tracy realized by his tan complexion, sharp black haircut and the X-shaped scar crossing his face that this man was none other than Iwashiro Nagisa, a formidable Japanese cop whom she had heard about, even back in New York.     "Ah, Miss Tracy. I've heard a lot about you," Nagisa said in almost perfect English. "You're responsible for bringing down the crime organization, the Himitsu Kessha, last year, correct?"     "Yeah, I s'pose had a part in that, but I can't take all the glory, y'know," Tracy admitted. Forsaking her natural New Yorker street slang, she hastily added, "That's why I'm here, sir. To investigate the new organization that supposedly is building, and take it out before it has a chance to expand."     Nagisa looked amused. "Yes, well, I have also been put on this assignment, so it appears we'll be working together."     "Wait a sec. You mean _you're_ the partner the guys said they were stickin' me with?"     "Yes. I can tell you're not pleased with it."     "Look, Nagisa," Tracy began with a sigh, "Not that I have anything against ya, man, it's just--"     That was all she was able to get out.     Nagisa suddenly erupted in such an explosion of rage that Tracy jumped back about three feet. He lept out of the chair and slammed a large fist down on the desk.     "Don't EVER call me by that name!" he roared at her. "You don't realize how humiliating it is to be one of the toughest policemen on the force and be stuck with a woman's name like Nagisa! I don't ever want to hear you mention that name again, do you understand?!?"     "Holy shit," Tracy muttered, allowing herself to breathe normally again. "A bit touchy, aren't we? Then what should I call you, Master?" She smirked. "And as I was about to say, I'm used to flyin' solo, so I really don't think this partner thing is gonna work out."     "Well, don't consider it a privilege," Nagisa snapped, his anger subsiding. "I usually work alone too, and I'm not thrilled having to work with an amateur."     "Amateur?!" Tracy was highly insulted. "What the hell d'ya _mean_, 'amateur'? I helped destroy the Himitsu, remember? Or have you forgotten already?"     "That does score you some brownie points, kid, but it's absolutely nothing compared to the things that I've been though. Things that a woman like you would never be able to handle."     This enraged Tracy no end, and she had to curb her first instinct to go straight for her tonfa and beat this guy into submission. "_WHAAAAAAATTT?!?!?_ Look, you jackass, not only can I handle this assignment, but I could do it ten times better than you ever could!!"     Nagisa settled back into his chair, smiled calmly. "Fine then. We'll see who does the better job."     "Fine with me!" Tracy stormed out of the office, still fuming. _I'll show that sonuvabitch,_ she thought to herself. With that, Tracy climbed into her Jeep and drove off in search of her friends.

******************

    "So you say you couldn't find this boy's parents?" Ellis inquired as she and the others headed over to Shizuku's to meet David, the young boy who was wanted by the Organization.     "Unfortunately, no," Shizuku replied. "It's not something he talks about very much, but from what I gather, his entire family died when he was six. There was a sudden fire, and only David got out alive."     "Oh," Ellis replied quietly, eyes cast to the ground. "I know what that's like."     Eiji put a hand on her shoulder. "We all know how it feels to lose a parent." Kayin only nodded, though it was in mild sadness.     They had reached the front steps of Shizuku's house, a small, typical Japanese cottage tucked away in a mountainous region, close to where Ellis's gypsy band was stationed for the next week or so. Shizuku unlocked the door and held it open for them as the four entered. As soon as they all stepped inside, they were intercepted by a young boy in his mid-teens. He was a couple inches taller than Ellis, with jet-black hair and saddened, empty blue eyes. He wore a long tan trenchcoat that was adorned with a pair of shoulder pads, similar to Kayin's, over a pair of dark maroon pants and green vest with a white shirt and blue tie tucked into it. Around his left leg was wrapped a small pink scarf, and he was carrying (much to the complete and very startling surprise of the fighters, even though they were all used to seeing weapons being held out in the open) a very large chainsaw. He was holding it up, ready to attack, but lowered it a little when he saw Shizuku. However, he held on to it tightly as he regarded with suspicion the other four strangers.     "I'm glad you're back," he said quietly to Shizuku, focusing on her and her alone.     Shizuku, unfazed by this whole picture, merely answered in a kind tone, "David-chan, I've brought some friends for you to meet. They're the ones that destroyed the Himitsu Kessha, and they've agreed to help us." She introduced each of them politely to David.     David only studied them individually for a while before saying, "So. You think you can defeat the Organization."     Kayin, noticing the familiar tone of sarcasm in David's voice that he himself used quite often, started to retort in his usual brash manner before Eiji interrupted him, for good reason.     "We'd like to help you be rid of them, and stop them from targeting our families and friends as well," Eiji said, nodding, while casting an annoyed look at Kayin, who looked away mock-innocently.     "Hmph," the young boy snorted. "The Soshiki is way more powerful than the Himitsu Kessha was, and their fighters are twice as strong as you. It won't be as easy as you think to beat them."     Eiji wasn't quite sure of what to say to that. "Anou..."     "David-chan," Shizuku began patiently as if she had been through this many times before, "You know you can't go up against the Soshiki by yourself and hope to survive. Eiji-san and his friends have offered to help. I think it would be best, for all of us, to accept their generous offer."     "That's right," Ellis added. "You can trust us, David. This Soshiki obviously means business, and that makes them our enemies too." She finished by holding her hand out toward him. David looked at her for a long time without saying anything, and just as she started to pull her hand away he said, "All right. You can try if you like. But be warned, you'll be going up against a very powerful adversary."     "Um...thanks, I guess."     Just then Tracy stormed in, muttering, "God, he is the most sexist, conceited...oh, hi guys. This is the right address then."     David immediately raised his chainsaw in defence and stepped menacingly towards her. "Who are you and how did you find this place?"     "Hey, easy, kid," Tracy said quickly, putting her hands in front of her and taking a couple cautious steps back. "I'm guessin' you're David."     "This is Tracy," Eiji introduced.     "She is with us," Sofia hastily added.     "And as for how I got here, I looked your address up in a phone book. Do you know how many Fujis I found?"     David lowered the chainsaw again, but still regarded Tracy with warning. "You're also here to help?"     "You bet. Sorry `bout the `tude. I just came from a meeting with my superior and things didn't go very well, if ya know what I mean."     "You can trust her, David-chan," said Shizuku. "I know."     "You can trust all of us," Sofia continued. "We would be more than happy to finally rid the world of the corrupt existence of these such organizations."     Here, Shizuku sighed and said, "Mina-san, it's getting late. I'm sorry that we have no extra beds, with myself, David, and my brother all staying here as well, so if you could all meet us back here tomorrow morning so we can plan what we're going to do about this..."     Eiji glanced at the others, then responded, "That sounds fine. Tomorrow morning, then."     After the group had left and were on their way back to the hotel where they were staying, Tracy remarked, "That David kid don't like to lighten up much, does he?" She smirked. "They oughta put a sign up out front, 'Beware Of Chainsaw-Wielding Adolescent'."     Kayin laughed, and Sofia chuckled lightly, but only until Eiji and Ellis gave the three of them hard looks. They all shut up.     "I do not think I saw him smile once," muttered Sofia.     "He must have gone through a really hard time," Ellis joined in.     "There's not much we can do right now," Eiji interrupted. "I suggest we all get some rest and prepare for tomorrow."

******************

    "Abel-sama."     The sword-wielding young man and two of his cohorts, the native boy in the colourful costume and the woman with the tonfas, crouched bowed on one knee before a large and somewhat mysterious-looking man with sandy blond hair and green eyes, wearing a navy-blue bandana and a matching small top, with striped orange pants. He frowned at the group, obviously displeased, before addressing the leader of the three.     "Leon. How goes the search for David and the woman believed to be hiding him?"     Leon, the swordsman, averted his glance. "Forgive me, but I have nothing to report. We are still searching."     "Fools!" Abel thundered, taking a step towards his henchmen. "How difficult can it be to locate one boy?"     "Zola may have some news when she returns," the tonfa-bearing young woman replied, pushing some of her short red hair out of her face. "We're doing the best we can under the circumstances."     "Well, apparently your best hasn't been good enough, has it?" came a raspy voice from the corner. All eyes turned toward a tall, spindly man wearing tinted glasses and a black suit, with stringy red hair and matching crimson marks etching his face. He was leaning against the wall and polishing one of two golden guns that he carried, a hint of a smirk on his lips.     The red-haired woman stood up and folded her arms in annoyance. "I'd like to see you do better, Vermilion."     "And I don't think you could do any worse, Rachael. Don't forget, I am your superior."     Rachael snickered nastily. "Superior, my ass."     "Rachael," Atahua, the native boy, said warningly in a hushed tone.     "What about that girl you killed two nights ago?" Abel demanded, cutting in between the two. "I told you all to keep a low profile for now. Do you have any excuses for that faulty order, Vermilion?"     "We had our reasons for that," Vermilion answered carelessly, shrugging. "We thought she had information that would lead us to David."     "Well, you were wrong, as I recall. A screw-up like that can bring too much attention down on us, and until we get our hands on that boy, that's not what we want."     "Abel-sama!" The young woman dressed in the leather cat suit ran in, pausing to bow before her master.     "What is it, Zola? Do you have news worthy of mentioning?" Abel asked, though he didn't sound too expectant.     "I do," she said hastily, her words slurred with a thick Australian accent. She dropped to one knee before him like the others. "David and Shizuku have joined forces with Eiji Shinjo, and the four other fighters from last year's Toshindaibukai."     Abel growled deep in his throat. "I thought something like that would happen. They could pose a great threat to our plans."     "Abel, let me deal with them," Vermilion requested. "I've faced those brats before, and I want to have the pleasure of burying my bullets in their skulls."     "I've been waiting longer than you for a fight with Eiji Shinjo," countered Leon, standing up and facing Vermilion. "I suffered a humiliating defeat at the hands of that blasted swordsman many years ago. Now's my chance to even the score. Let me go!"     "Need I remind you that I am second in command," Vermilion retorted angrily. "The privilege should go to me!"     "I've waited years for this!" Leon yelled back, hand inching towards his sword. "I will not be denied this chance!"     "Enough of petty squabbling!!" Abel shouted, shutting the two men up. Calming down, he murmured, "We may be able to kill two birds with one stone. We can both kill the Toshin fighters and capture the boy. Now is when your duplicated skills of the fighters will be put to good use."     "Like Tracy, huh?" Atahua said while glancing over at Rachael. "Well, how `bout that, huh, Rach? Looks like you might finally get the chance to settle things between you and her, once and for all."     Rachael said nothing, and refused to look at any of them. Leon noticed this and was quick to taunt her about it. "Hey, sounds to me like our little Rachael's getting cold feet. If you don't got the guts, Rachael, then maybe you shouldn't have joined the Soshiki."     Suddenly Leon found himself lying on the floor on his back, with one of Rachael's flaming tonfas pointed directly at his throat.     "You wouldn't like to repeat that, would you?" she asked, smiling with venom and green eyes glittering coldly.     "Uh...n-no, of course not."     "Good." She let him up off the floor, but not without kicking him in the side first. "I'll have you know I have just as much guts as any of you here. Just wait until I see Tracy again. She'll never expect what's coming."     "Patience, my fighters," Abel commented. "Very soon you will all have a chance to face this group of fighters." He smiled.     "Very soon indeed."

**********


	4. Chapter Three: Findings

**_In a world of darkness sanctioned by evil,  
where the only light of hope is a group of unlikely heroes,  
the legend's final chapter is about to begin..._**

**- TOH SHIN DEN III: Walking Into Ruin -**

_a Battle Arena Toshinden 3 fanfiction by Athena Asamiya and Kasumi Todoh_

  
**CHAPTER THREE: Discoveries**   
  
**Translations:**     _-san_ - honourific used for respect; somewhat like our "Miss" or "Mr."     _gomenasai_ - I'm sorry [formal]     _koitsu_ - you [rude]     _oi oi, yamete!_ - hey hey, stop it!     _mina-san_ - everyone [polite]     _-chan_ - honourific used for close friends, children or pets   
  
  


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    "I'm telling you, no!!"     "We might need his help, Tracy. Come on, please?"     "Forget it, Eiji! I will NOT ask for his help!!"     "But he could be a good fighter..."     "Eiji, I said NO and I MEAN NO!!!"     Eiji sighed. He had known Tracy to be unreasonable, but this...? "Tracy," he began, curbing his first impulse to lose his temper, "you said yourself that you heard he was a terrific fighter. And this 'Nagisa' probably has access to computer networks and things like that. We could find out what's going on, see if there really is a new threat here. Get it?"     "Huh." Tracy tossed her head, annoyed. "He's some macho asshole who thinks I don't know what I'm talking about. What difference would this make? That, oh hey, forgot to tell ya, I just happen to hang out with a group of fighters who all own concealed weapons, which is a felony I might add, and we're planning to take down this group by ourselves?? There's no way!"     Eiji looked thoughtful. "Then maybe we could persuade him to fight with us..."     "WHATTTTTT??"     "You're going to have to tell him sooner or later. You're not going to be able to keep a secret like this if he's going to be hanging around you a lot."     "Whose side are you on, anyway? I'm not saying it again, I won't do it!"     The outcome of the argument was pretty obvious.

    "All I can say is that this was _not_ my idea."     Tracy had somehow found herself back at the Tokyo Police Headquarters, standing in front of Nagisa's desk. The Japanese cop looked at her skeptically, and Tracy could tell he was hardly believing the explanation she had just finished giving him.     As Tracy tried to give him a convincing smile, she cursed inside. _Eiji, I'll get you for this._ If it was up to Tracy, her so-called 'partner' would have nothing to do with the group's new mission at all. Eiji, once hearing about Tracy's dilemma, had thought Nagisa would be great help and a powerful ally in their mission, as well as the fact that he didn't want Tracy to get fired from the force because she was too stubborn to apologize. As Eiji had reminded her before she left, "Being a fighter isn't a full-time job. We all have to make a living some way or another."     "Guess savin' the world doesn't get us big bucks, huh?" Tracy had replied with a cocky grin as she sped off.     Looking back on their whole conversation in general, Tracy decided the reason she'd lost was because there were times when Eiji was even more stubborn than she could be. Not to mention everyone else was backing Eiji on this one, so Tracy hadn't had much to stand on, despite her loud protests.     Now, standing in front of Nagisa's disbelieving gaze, she tried saying, "Look, you read the files you got on me so you know I'm telling the truth about the tournaments. This was my friend's idea, not mine."     Seeing him nod, she continued coldly, "You may have more experience than I have when it comes to police work, but my friends and I know have more experience with the Toshindaibukai than you'll ever have with policing. So as long as we're layin' down ground rules for each other as partners, I'm gonna say that I don't ever want to hear that I don't know what doing when it comes to this sort of case. Fighting in this circuit, I've seen things that none of you ever have or ever will see in your life." Nagisa still said nothing. Apparently he knew she had more to say, and was going to let say it before replying himself.     "And as much as it disgusts me to admit," Tracy went on, "Eiji might have a point. Of course, he hasn't met you, so that could be why. However, guess we ARE partners now, so for the sake of David, Shizuku, and my friends, and even though it does get really - really REALLY - dangerous when you deal with a group like the Soshiki, I'm willing-" she made a face, "-to give you another chance." Finishing her speech, she waited for a reply.     _Please say no. Please say no. Please say no._     Tracy was barely able to hide a smile as she imagined the scenario where Nagisa refused. If he did, she could simply tell Eiji and the others that she'd tried her best, but he didn't want to agree to help...     "All right."     "Huh?"     "I said all right," Nagisa replied absently, checking the large gun and long retractable blade he had holstered at his sides. "I was also assigned to this case, so if you have any information, I need to know too. We ARE partners now, and that's an order from your superior."     _Lucky me,_ Tracy thought sarcastically. _And dammit, why won't he just shut up about being my 'superior'?_     Nagisa got up out of his chair and walked out from behind his desk, turning his back to her and attaching a pair of silver handcuffs to his belt loops. "Since we are going to be partners, I don't want there to be any tensions between us after this, so I'll respect your ideas, and try to not criticize you."     _What d'ya know,_ Tracy thought to herself, pleased. _I guess when he tries, he can be somewhat decent._ "And I'll try not to call you--you know--again, Iwashiro."     "Good." He offered her a black-gloved hand, and they shook on it.     "We're having a meeting Shizuku's house right now," said Tracy, adjusting the large goggles that were strapped to her backwards-turned ballcap. "My friends are already over there. You coming?"     "Of course," Nagisa replied. "You wanna take my car?"     "NO! Uh, nothing personal, but I rented a Jeep, so I'll use it myself if you don't mind."

*****************

    "How are we supposed to find out we're up against?" Ellis questioned David at Shizuku's house the following morning. The whole team was there with them, crammed into a rather small living room, except for Tracy, who had left an hour earlier to fetch the newest ally, her partner Nagisa. For some odd reason, David had taken more of a liking to Ellis than the rest of them - it was probably the closeness in age as well as circumstance - but even that wasn't much, as he still showed enough acidity to scare practically everyone except Ellis and Shizuku away. And even though Eiji was turning a bit green around the edges from Ellis showing David so much attention (as well as attempting to restrain Kayin from snapping back at the kid's often-sarcastic comments), Ellis continued to try and find out as much as she could from their new ally. "Is there anyway we could find out more about them?"     Laid back in an old chair with his arms crossed defensively in front of him, David shot back, "You want to know the enemy better?"     "Quite frankly, yes."     "Well," David considered this for a second. "The Soshiki does have a main computer system where they keep all their important documents and files. You'd probably be able to find some interesting bits of information from there. Good luck gaining access to them, though."     "Perhaps I could find a way in," offered Sofia from the couch, speaking up for the first time that morning.     "Oh yeah?" David challenged, standing up and clenching his fist. "How?"     Sofia stood up to meet his gaze coldly. "I am - or rather was - a secret agent. It was my previous profession. I have learned a few things about hacking into computer files, one of the things that used to be my, how you say, forte."     "That would be great if you could, Sofia," Eiji said enthusiastically. He turned to Shizuku. "Do you have a computer we could use?"     "Gomenasai," she answered back apologetically, "but I don't. As good a gambler as I am, most of my money goes towards keeping this house."     "So much for that idea," Kayin replied, sighing. Just then, the sound of two vehicles pulling into the driveway was heard. "Must be Tracy and her new partner. About time too."     In a few moments, Tracy came through the front screen door of the house, along with a tall, tough-looking man wearing a half-open, high-collared shirt and black vest with dark red pants. Tracy pointed to her companion and said, "Guys, this is Iwashiro Nagisa, of the Tokyo police."     Kayin glanced at him, smirking, with a light in his eyes that was familiar to Eiji. (Noticing this, Eiji buried his head in his hands and muttered some Japanese words) "Nagisa, huh? Anyone ever told you you have a girl's name?"     Behind him, Tracy winced.     Nagisa's scarred face turned bright red. "I DO KNOW THAT!!" he roared at Kayin. "That's why I never want to have it said!! If I ever hear you call me by that again, I will kill you on the spot! Do you hear me?!?"     Failing to notice the frantic gestures Tracy was making, Kayin looked Nagisa straight in the eye (for they were about the same height), nearly laughing at this point, and said, "Get a breath mint, pal. You know what? You're a jackass."     "Koitsu...how dare you address me that way?? Do you even know who you're speaking to?"     "Why, yes I do. I think I've heard of you, actually. You're the biggest asshole in all of Japan, right?"     "That's it! I'm gonna teach you not mess with the law!!" Nagisa shouted, drawing out and extending his long-bladed knife.     "Hah. You can sure try, Travolta!" Kayin snapped back as he unsheathed Excalibur.     "Oi oi, yamete!" Eiji finally shoved himself between the two, clutching the sheathed Byakko no Tachi as a warning. "Can we get back on topic here? We need to find a way to hack into the Soshiki's computer system, remember?"     "You're right," Kayin replied, starting to calm down.     "What's this about into a computer?" questioned Nagisa, putting away his knife.     "We are trying to get into the Soshiki's main computer," Sofia explained, "so we can find out more about them and learn what they're up to."     "Now, wait a minute. Network hacking is illegal."     "What the Soshiki is trying to do is way more illegal than anything we could do, Iwashiro-san," Shizuku commented quietly.     "And we don't have any other choice," Ellis finished, shrugging. "There's no other way of getting the information we need."     "Except maybe going over to the Soshiki and personally asking," Kayin muttered sarcastically. "And I can see two reasons why that wouldn't work: one, we don't have a damn clue where the headquarters is, and two, chances are the people there wouldn't take very kindly to our barging in, and would most likely kick our asses and laugh about it."     "Don't forget," David added, arms folded in disbelief, "we still need a computer in order to get anywhere."     "Well, if you put it that way," Nagisa offered, "I have a laptop in my car, if it'll help you out."     Five minutes later, Sofia was typing away at the computer, a look of extreme concentration on her face while the others watched over her shoulder in a large huddle. Finally, she turned around in her chair.     "As I believe most 'hackers' say, I am in," she announced proudly. "I have not lost my skill one bit." She turned back to the computer, moved the mouse and clicked on 'Himitsu Kessha - Invitee Main Personal Files'. "This sounds interesting. Now, let us see just how much they know about us."     Instantly, a list of names appeared.     Ellis peeked over at the screen on her tiptoes, her small stature proving to be a disadvantage. "Those are all our names. And the names of the other fighters from the Toshindaibukai."     "I told you," David replied smugly. "The Soshiki has stuff on all the fighters who have taken part in the Himitsu Kessha's Toshindaibukai tournaments."     "Then let us see what kind of 'stuff' they have on us," Sofia said. She looked at Eiji over her shoulder. "Eiji, you do not mind if we look at your file first?"     Eiji shrugged. "Go ahead."     "All right." Sofia moved the mouse and clicked on the file marked 'Eiji Shinjo', and read aloud what appeared.     "Shinjo, Eiji. Age: 23. Height: 5'9". Weight: 149 lbs. Blood Type: A. Hair Colour: auburn. Eye Colour: red. Nationality: Japanese. Weapon Type: Byakko no Tachi (katana).     "Background: One of the key fighters in the Toshindaibukai, supposed leader of the rebel fighters. Exceedingly strong with much spiritual power. Younger and only brother of Sho Shinjo. He and his band of fighters pose the second-greatest threat to the Soshiki.     "Procedure? Destroy at all costs."     "Well, that's bloody cheerful," Kayin muttered. "You're very popular, Eiji-chan."     Meanwhile, David was looking at Eiji strangely. "Eiji, it said that you have a brother named Sho...right?"     Eiji seemed startled, then quietly replied, "Yes...I do."     "Ah," David murmured, almost to himself. "So that would explain it..."     "What do-" Eiji began to ask, but Tracy interrupted him by saying, "Second greatest? Why not first?"     "That title belongs to Eiji's brother, I would think," answered David.     "How much do you know about my niisan anyway?" Eiji questioned, confused.     "Enough to know that the whole Soshiki is scared shitless of him." David thought for a minute. "During the ceremony where they tried to sacrifice me, I can remember some people of the Soshiki muttering something about two people called the Blood-Eyed Angel and the Blood-Red Angel."     Eiji was surprised enough for all of them. "Kesshoku no Tenshi. I remember that."     "Then the other one has to be Cupido," mused Ellis.     "Cupido? Oh yeah, they mentioned their real names after that. They were saying something about how Sho and Cupido were the biggest threat they had ever encountered."     "No doubt that is because they were the real ones who destroyed the Himitsu Kessha," Sofia said, still typing away.     David raised an eyebrow. "I thought that was you guys."     "When you look back on it, we only helped. They were the ones who took them down, pretending to be their henchmen," Kayin murmured. "What a pair. You still have to wonder if they were just pretending to be our allies..."     "Does that mean that niisan is involved with them now too?" Eiji asked David, who just shrugged. "Don't know. Probably. But if he's a threat, that means he's not on their side."     Eiji almost sighed in relief, but caught himself just in time. _Why am I feeling relieved? This is going be trouble for both of us. I know he can handle it, but...what's he gonna be like if I see him again...?_     Shizuku interrupted his thoughts by saying, "Mina-san, look there."     Sure enough, Sofia had exited out of the file and went back to the main menu and, one by one, read through Kayin's, her own, Ellis', Tracy's, then two additional files, Shizuku's and David's. All of them ended the same the way: _Destroy at all costs_, except David's file, which ended with _Capture immediately_.     "That's no fair," Kayin protested indignantly. "How come the kid gets off easy?"     "That's not getting off easy!" David argued. "Some things are worse than death. And coming from the Soshiki, that's a lot of things."     "Now, what we can find out about the Soshiki members themselves..." Sofia said, averting the argument by clicking on another file. "Hmm. Apparently, the Soshki recruits its warriors with promises of anything they want. To become better at something, to become stronger, to become more powerful, usually more powerful, these people promise it all. They can grant all these promises too, somehow, though I am not sure how."     "Who are these people though?" Nagisa urged. "This wasn't a case I've studied, but I think I'd have seen some files by now."     "Not if they work for one of these organizations. There are at least fourteen people who have joined, but there seem to be five in particular, who stand higher than the rest. They all obey someone called Abel -- their leader, obviously. The one who is second-in-command is..._Vermilion?!?_"     "Vermilion??" chorused Eiji, Kayin, Ellis and Tracy in loud unison.     "You know him?" questioned David in a slightly monotone voice.     "All too well," Kayin responded, growling. "He worked with the Himitsu Kessha, but it was all just a plot, and he ended up killing the Master and would've liked to do the same to us. That goddamn gun-crazy loony."     Tracy scowled. "He tried to kill us all. At the second Toshindaibukai tourney."     "...By making clones of Ellis-chan and I," Eiji added, still angry over the incident from a year ago.     "But I thought he was destroyed along with the Himitsu Kessha headquarters," pondered Ellis, looking over at the computer screen to see the writing for herself. "How can he still be alive?"     "Guess he did make it out," commented Eiji, "and got back to the Soshiki alive." He glanced over at David. "It sounded like you knew him too."     David looked the other way. "Let's just say it wasn't under welcome circumstances."     "Listen to this," Sofia said. "There's also another person who appears to be third-in-command. It says here his name is Leon." At the mention of this name, Eiji groaned.     "I take it you've met before, Eiji?" Kayin asked.     "I met him quite a few years ago," Eiji explained with a pained look on his face. "Leon challenged me to a fight once. He was pretty good, almost as good as me. Almost. His problem was that he was too brash, too overconfident. That's why he lost."     "Seems you have a habit of getting people mad at you, Eiji," said Kayin, grinning.     "Shut up."     "Like to, but I have to go pick up Naru. Later." With that, Kayin rose and left the house without another word. Eiji watched after his friend, sighing. _I hope he's not being too overprotective of Naru-chan, after what happened last year..._     Meanwhile, Ellis was still looking at the computer screen, and reading who the next person on the Soshiki list was. "Zola? I've heard of her. Isn't she a famous opera singer?"     "That appears to be just her, as you say, day job," Sofia replied, glaring at the screen. "By night she is an underground assassin and a spy for the Soshiki."     Just then there was a loud squealing sound in the kitchen, indicating that the tea Shizuku had put on was ready. Shizuku, who had been very quiet through this whole experience, started to get up silently.     "I'll get that for you," Tracy quickly said, rising and going into the kitchen.     "The fourth one," Sofia went on, "there does not seem to be much on him. Except that his name is Atahua, he is about the same age as Ellis, and he is exiled royalty from a native village somewhere. From the pictures he looks to me like he is African or South American, perhaps." She read a bit closer. "One of the lower-ranked warriors is his father."     "And the last one?" Shizuku asked. "You said there were five."     "There is not really much on her either," Sofia answered, clicking the mouse button. "Just that she is in her early twenties, from America, and her name is Rachael--"     There came a loud crash from the kitchen.     Everyone rushed into the kitchen. A tray, which Tracy had placed the teacups on, now lay upside down on the floor, admist the pieces of the smashed teacups, in a large greenish puddle of tea. Tracy just stood there, staring at the mess, dumbfounded.     "Are you all right?" asked Nagisa, concerned.     "I...uh...I'm fine," Tracy stammered. "I-I need some to get some air. I won't be gone long." Before anyone could say anything, Tracy pushed past them and left the house.     "Weird," Ellis commented. She and Shizuku began picking the teacup pieces while Sofia went to look for a mop.

*****************

    Tracy was back in her Jeep, gripping the wheel so hard her knuckles were turning white, and was trying to get as far away from the house as possible.     Or at least that announcement...and her own bitter memories...     She would return within the next couple of hours, but in the meantime, she had to clear her head. But still, Tracy couldn't stop her own troubled thoughts.     _Rachael...Goddammit, why...?_

**********


	5. Chapter Four: Approach

**_In a world of darkness sanctioned by evil,  
where the only light of hope is a group of unlikely heroes,  
the legend's final chapter is about to begin..._**

**- TOH SHIN DEN III: Walking Into Ruin -**

_a Battle Arena Toshinden 3 fanfiction by Athena Asamiya and Kasumi Todoh_

  
**CHAPTER FOUR: Approach**   
  
**Translations:**     _otousan_ - father     _minna, Kayin-chan wa doko da?_ - everyone, where is Kayin?     _maa_ - well     _ano bakayaro_ - that stupid bastard     _nani yo?_ - what is it?   
  


  
***************

  
    _"...And as we mourn his passing and lay his soul to rest, we pray that God, in all His power, shall protect him and watch over him always. Amen."     A scattered amount of hushed "amen"s were heard floating through the black-clad crowd of mourners. As the coffin was laid into the newly-dug plot in the graveyard, whatever eyes that were not watching it being lowered were on one young man, standing apart from the crowd. He was at the very front, near the headstone, and dressed in a jet-black suit, contrasted by his mane of long red-blond hair and the silver cross that hung around his neck. He was staring blankly at the hole in the ground, with almost empty, detached aqua eyes. A few whispers passing through the crowd could be heard, to those who would listen.     "Is that Amoh's boy?"     "Aye, that it is. He's only nineteen, poor lad."     "Heard he just got 'imself back from Japan too."     "What a shock it must have been for him. But look, his face is so emotionless."     "That's the way those Amohs be. If he's anything like his father was, he'll be a rogue, still living by the old clan ways of the sword."     These words did nothing to arouse a response from the teenager, who continued to only watch the hole below him. He didn't even lift his gaze to see the casket being lowered. Didn't move, and hardly breathed. Some of the members of the mourners cast quick glances at him, trying to read the emotion on his face, in his eyes, but there was none. Nothing at all. No sadness, no anger, just nothing. It was almost as if he was far away from all of them, uncomprehending, unknowing.     After it was over, the burial procession moved past him, some touching his shoulder gently and whispering kind words, but there was still no acknowledgement. In his mind, it was over. Completely. Everyone left, and there was only him, and the light rain that had just begun to fall.     Finally, after what seemed like an eternity of being still, he turned, forcing his eyes to look away and his feet to move. But he did nothing to stop the vengeful thoughts that now raged through his mind, scourging it like wildfire.     
_Just wait, you motherfucking MURDERER. This is not over. When I get to you, you'll be dead before you can even scream for mercy.     _He walked off, away from the grave, the graveyard, into the darkness that awaited him.     
_I will see justice done, no matter what it takes. 

    What had followed after was far more vivid, and more easily remembered now, if he tried. Anger. Bitterness. Sadness. Rage. And always, the pain. More pain than he ever thought he could feel, any _human_ could feel. There had been a time of relentless searching...concluded by a horrible realization. Nothing could reverse those painful moments in time. They left festering sores on one's soul, eventually burning down into scars that may never fully heal. Not even he, one of the best fighters on earth, could battle with his desolate past forever. The unyielding search, the fury and the mourn, had ended in nothing but sorrow. Denial was of no use. There was no denial left in him. He had left it all behind, but had not forgiven, and he knew, deep in his soul, that he never would. For the one named Kayin Amoh, also known as the Scottish bounty hunter Storm, forgiveness was, like so many other things, far beyond him now. 

    That afternoon's sun shone brightly over the clifftop where a single gravestone stood, and parked nearby, a motorcycle. Kayin Amoh walked slowly up to the headstone, a bunch of flowers in one hand, and a guitar case in the other. He felt stupid carrying his sword in the case, but he was also tired of all the strange looks people gave him when he carried it out in the open. At least this way he could avoid all the strange looks, and at least pretend he was half-normal. Kayin was fiercely proud of his differences that separated him from the common 24-year old Scot, but still, this lifestyle had brought him nothing but pain and sorrow, as he could sadly remember. Standing before his father's resting place made him feel worse, but strangely calmer than he usually was. Kayin still had his daughter though, and they loved each other dearly. But it really couldn't be the same, now that both his real father and foster father were gone. Kayin cast a glance over his shoulder with a small smile. Trailing behind him, in a little pink striped dress with her blond hair tied in corkscrew pigtails with matching pink ribbons, was Kayin's six-year-old adopted daughter Naru. She slowly walked in Kayin's footsteps, almost overshadowed by him -- and that was basically the story of their relationship: Naru following behind the greatness of her 'father'. The details as to why Kayin had adopted her were still shadowed even now, even after last year's Toshindaibukai when he had admitted, for the first time, that he had killed her true father. Wisely, he hadn't decided to tell her the truth just yet. She was too young, Kayin thought, and probably wouldn't understand. Even so, the two thought of themselves as father and daughter, no more, no less. Her little feet picked up in their footsteps, and she ran up to Kayin's side.     "Otousan..." she started, using her pet nickname for Kayin, "you're okay, right?"     Kayin smiled down at his young daughter, ruffling her hair. "I'm fine, Naru. Don't you be worrying about your ol' dad."     Naru giggled and nodded. She was indeed an extremely cute child, and she really did look like Kayin's true daughter, surprisingly enough. "It's just that you always look so sad when we visit Grandpa's grave, otousan."     "Do I now," Kayin answered thoughfully. "That's pretty observant of you."     She grinned happily at his praise. "I already do better in class than most of the mean boys at school. I just tell them that MY daddy saved the world."     "Um, sweetheart? I wouldn't be telling anybody else about that...okay?"     "Why, otousan?"     "Because...people aren't really supposed to know."     "Oh. Okay."     Kayin smiled warmly at her. "That's my lass. Wait here for a second."     Brushing the usual thoughts aside as he approached the grave, Kayin laid the flowers on his father's grave, and spoke in a hushed whisper so that Naru wouldn't hear. "Looks like something's up, Dad. None of us know what's coming, but Eiji's got one of his feelings again...you know how that always works out..." Kayin sighed, and continued. "And now we're all gathering at this girl Shizuku's house, so who know's what's gonna happen next...and it seems that no matter what we do, we can't shake them. There's no escape. Guess we sealed our fates that day three years ago."     Unknownst to Kayin, a shadowy eavesdropper was listening.     _Shizuku...Fuji Shizuku...so _that's_ where they've been hiding._     "Trae's got a new partner, there's some chainsaw-wielding loony kid who thinks we can't beat the new organization, the Soshiki or whatever the hell they're called...am I just being daft, or is it maybe something else...?" Kayin closed his eyes for a second.     A second was all Zola needed.     "Otousan, watch out!" Naru screamed behind him.     The slinky Australian cat-girl pulled out her spike-barbed whip, licked it, and charged towards Kayin. One whip-slash to the back got his attention.     "What in bloody hell--??" Kayin exclaimed as he dodged a rake from her claws. He rolled out of the way and glared at her. Zola grinned devilishly but said nothing, and as she raised her whip over her head, it started to sparkle with ki. She pulled back, then channeled the ki through the thin whip, tossing the energy forwards in the shape of a glowing green ring. "Flash Ring!!"     Kayin growled and deftly avoided it with speed only Ellis could match, ripping his sword out of the guitar case and dashing at Zola, flipping over in an overhead axe kick and following up with a pair of slashes to the midsection. Zola went down hard but recovered quickly, faster than had been anticipated by Kayin, and raked her claws down his torso, drawing blood as Naru covered her eyes. The catwoman then continued her assault by yelling "Oshioki da yo!", flinging her whip forwards as it cracked out again and again on its own, the stinging barbs repeatedly striking Kayin. The swordsman was thrown backwards to the ground in front of Naru, who looked down on her fallen father with tears in her young eyes. "Otousan, what should I do??"     Kayin, smiling through the pain in his side, held the sword out to her. "Time to put your training...to use."     Naru's emerald green eyes widened, as she accepted the blade, which was practically two times the size of her. "But otousan, I'm not good enough yet! I haven't learned enough!"     "You are...if you believe you are," he answered seriously. "Just give me...a minute..." here he winced, seeing the blood that was seeping from a gash in his stomach, "and I'll be fine."     "All right. I'll try, otousan, and I'll do my best." The little girl held the broadsword by two hands and walked up to Zola, who was regarding her with a look that was a cross between mockery and pity.     "You are going to fight me?" she sneered. "Poor child. This will be very unfair."     "Don't count on it! I'm going to make otousan proud!!" Naru cried. With that, she swung the sword back, then forwards again, sparks of yellow ki flying out of the slash. "Sonic Slash!!"     Zola, who wasn't expecting this in the least, was forced to take the energy attack head on. Before she could recover, the blond girl shot towards her, surrounded by flame. "Yattana!!" The hit connected, setting the catwoman aflame with ki. Finished up her string of attacks, Naru hopped onto one foot and pirhouetted around and around, sword held out, ripping into Zola's defences and midsection, before ending with a fierce slash that sent Zola back and away, landing on her face. Naru couldn't have been more happy at this, her first actual fight won. She winked and made a thumbs-up, in a smaller rendition of her father's famous quote. "Jigoku de au ze, baby!!"     "Good work, lass," Kayin said from behind her, slowly walking up to her, almost half-limping.     "Thank you, otousan!" Naru cried in her childish excitement. "I did really really good, right otousan? I did, didn't I? Huh?"     "You did extremely well. I'm proud of you." Naru held out his sword, as Kayin took it gratefully. "Now, honey, please step back and don't come near here, all right?"     "Okay, otousan." Naru hopped back to where Kayin's motorcycle stood, watching with wide eyes, eager to see what her father was going to do next.     As Zola was trying to get her bruised body off the ground, Kayin snarled at her, "So ya wanna play tough, huh, Cat-bitch?? Let's see what you think of this!!" Kayin tightened his grip on Excalibur, as he held it out in front of him, the sword itself starting to glow slightly. A smile started to play on his lips and his eyes closed with concentration, as he held out Excalibur in front of him. Great masses of energy began to gather in its wide blade. Zola had only enough time to think of one thing.     _Oh, shit._     A blinding flash ensued, and a colossal blast of the gathered ki-energy surged out of Kayin's blade, and shot towards Zola. Such a monumental fire-blast would have easily killed Zola where she now stood.     If she hadn't moved out of the way, with a speed that seemed almost inhuman.     "Goddammit!!" yelled Kayin angrily, seeing his opponent standing to the left, perfectly fine. And Zola sneered at him. "You and all your little Toshinden fighter mates...prepare yourselves!! We're coming for all of you!!"     And with that, Zola turned, and...disappeared. Kayin blinked, but no. She was gone. Entirely.     "What was that all about?" he muttered to himself, putting a hand to his forehead. _A whip...that projectile...it looked so much like--_ Kayin shook his head, placed Excalibur back in the case, and turned towards his motorcycle and his young daughter, who was clapping her hands with glee.     "You did great, otousan! Really great! Can I learn that someday?"     "Maybe someday, Naru. For now, we're going to have to get you back to my friend's place."     "Awwww!" she moaned. "I get to miss the rest of the fun! Kick their asses for me, would you, otousan?"     "Naru!" Kayin exclaimed, shocked. "Where did you learn that word?"     "From you. You say it all the time."     "Um...well...just don't use it in the future, okay?"     "Yep! Okay!"     As they prepared to leave, Kayin took one more look at his father's grave.     "Wish me luck, Dad. If this is just a preview of what's to come, it looks like we're all gonna need it..."

***************

    Eiji paced into the main room with one hand on his head, where Shizuku was with a glaring David, and Ellis and Sofia were talking quietly amongst themselves about plans for protecting David from the Soshiki. "Minna, Kayin-chan wa doko da? Hasn't he come back yet?"     Sofia looked up briefly and shook her head. "Not yet, Eiji. It is strange."     "He should have been back by now, Eiji-kun..." Ellis added, sounding worried.     "Tracy's not back yet either," Nagisa said, shifting through some police files. Eiji glanced around at all of them and sighed. "Kayin's probably just gone off again...maa, he'll be back soon, I guess..."     _But why do I feel so uneasy, then? What's about to happen...?_     Just then, the sound of a motorcycle pulling up could be heard, and, in one of his usual flamboyant entries (though it wasn't planned this time), Kayin burst into the house with a loud bang and almost enough force to rip the door from its hinges.     "Okay, there is something bloody well SCREWED going on here!!"

****************

    Unknown to all, he was watching. The small house settled deeply in the mountains was not very hard to find -- and find it he did. He had made it a habit to check on them every now and again -- though he couldn't exactly decide why. Now that the Soshiki was here, putting their little plans into motion, it was more important than ever that the warriors, especially Eiji and Kayin, knew that they were marked for death. And he knew all this, had known all this before it even began. _Abel, ano bakayaro,_ he thought to himself angrily, _he WOULD try to kill them first, before they got in the way. Little does he know what power they possess. He'll find out soon enough, and I'll be there to see it. Watching and laughing as he takes his last breath, and this will all finally be finished._ He smiled to himself, but warily. _Things may not have changed, but this is the way it is supposed to be. And they'll know it, soon enough, no matter how painful it is._ The stranger turned, looked back at the house, and then glanced at the sword-hilt at his side, that reminded him of a figure in his past.  
    _Eiji..._

***************

    "You blundering fool of a catwoman!!!" boomed Abel, rising out of his throne in rage. Zola flinched, kneeling before her master with her head bowed, turned so that she could avoid his dagger glare.     "Forgive me, Abel-sama. I agree that what I did was rash and did not realize that he held such power. I thought I could defeat him easily."     "...And you sure found out the hard way, didn't you? You are quite the dense one."     Zola stiffened at the sound of her commander's voice, but did not reply to Vermilion. _Unlike that rebellious idiot, Rachael,_ she thought to herself, _ I know enough to keep quiet when he is around. Vermilion-sama is our superior, after all, and has more than enough power to blow all of us away in one second._     Vermilion walked slowly up to them out of the shadows, a cold look on his crimson-marked face, his namesake. "We didn't give you Agon Teos' sacred blood for nothing, Zola. Your job is to take care of your original, Sofia, not that Amoh boy!!"     Zola hung her head and quickly said, "Forgive me, Vermilion-sama, I thought that eliminating at least one of them could have proven to be useful--"     Vermilion pulled out one of his guns and waved it at her cautiously. Zola's face went white under her headpiece, and her slit cat-like eyes followed the gun's trail. "If you had destroyed him, it would have risen the alarm amongst the others. The one you attacked happened to be the training partner and best friend of Eiji Shinjo."     Zola's eyes widened; she was struck dumb. "_Shinjo?!?_ Not...is he...??"     It was here that Abel intervined. "No. But he's related to _him_. And you DO know how much power he has, do you not? You DO know what happened to the Himitsu Kessha after they crossed him and the other, do you not?? Answer me, fool!"     Zola only nodded slowly.     "Good. Do not try that again, or I shall be forced to rebuke you severely. Now, get out of here!!"     "Yes, Abel-sama!" Zola answered, hurrying (and glad) to get out of there. But halfway through her escape, she slowed and came to a halt. The former opera singer turned around. "Abel-sama..." she began, "I-I know where they are. The fighters we are looking for. And possibly the boy as well."     "WHAT?!?" Abel's voice rose considerably, not too easy a feat. Even the stoic Vermilion looked rather surprised that one of his henchmen, though they were all suitably trained, had managed to find out such important information.     "The...the one I attacked...this 'Kayin' said that they were meeting at the house of the woman Fuji Shizuku, the wandering gambler. Wasn't there a rumour that the woman had adopted the boy David? The woman we killed mentioned Shizuku's name, but didn't tell us anything."     Abel looked thoughtful. "Indeed, there was that rumour. So, it must have been true after all." He turned to Vermilion, who was waiting patiently for the expected order. "Vermilion, take Leon, Zola, Atahua, and Rachael, go capture the boy and destroy the others. See to it that they will not get in our way."     Vermilion smiled coldly. "Yes."

***************

    "...And that's what happened. I'll be damned if she wasn't out to kill me, or at least one of us," Kayin finished. He had managed to catch his breath, at least, but now all the other fighters, who had gathered in the room to listen to his story, were looking rather concerned.     "So there's the first sign that something's up," Eiji murmured. "And now what? Tracy's hasn't got back yet--"     "You think she was attacked as well?" added in Ellis, sounding worried, but Nagisa shook his head. "She's a trained policewoman, and has obviously dealt with these kind before. She'll be fine, whatever happens."     Eiji didn't look so sure, remembering how large of an army these organizations could amass, but continued. "...Even so, what's going to happen next? They're definately out to get us again--"     "--Because you agreed to help us," interrupted Shizuku sadly. "I didn't wish any of this to happen, minna-san, and I'm afraid you are all in worse danger than before!"     "No," Eiji answered firmly. "We knew what we were up against when we agreed to help you two. This was all pretty much expected, and I doubt any of us really give a damn if they're up against us or not. We beat the Himitsu Kessha, and we can beat them too." That said, he turned back to his best friend. "So she was a catwoman, you said, Kayin-chan?"     Kayin nodded. "Some kinda cat-girl, yeah. And she had a bullwhip..."     "A bullwhip?" Sofia broke in. "She was using MY trademark weapon?" She snickered. "She has guts, trying to imitate my style."     "More than that, Sofi," Kayin said, "she performed YOUR Thunder Ring."     Sofia rose from her chair angrily. "MY Thunder Ring? That cannot be possible, my fighting style is mine alone!"     "Well...she called it the 'Flash Ring', and it looked identical to yours. I didn't really give much thought to it, but I noticed the whip, and so..." Kayin trailed off.     "My God," whispered Ellis is dismay. "Was she another clone, maybe?"     Kayin shook his head. "Don't think so. She wasn't exactly the same, but close enough. Glad it's not another clone too, we had enough problems last time."     Eiji pounded his gloved fist on the table. "That does it. I'm not going to sit around and wait for their next move. We need to take action, before anyone else gets hurt." Suddenly Kayin drew in his breath sharply. "Kayin-chan, nani yo?"     Kayin looked like he was going to be sick. "Oh, damn...I said that we were meeting here, and that cat-girl must have heard me, since she said that they were going to be coming for us..."     And, as if on cue, the sound of the house door being jarred loose was heard.

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	6. Chapter Five: Confrontations

**_In a world of darkness sanctioned by evil,  
where the only light of hope is a group of unlikely heroes,  
the legend's final chapter has begun..._**

**- TOH SHIN DEN III: Walking Into Ruin -**

_a Battle Arena Toshinden 3 fanfiction by Athena Asamiya and Kasumi Todoh_

  
**CHAPTER FIVE: Confrontation**   
  
**Translations:**     _daijoubu?_ - are you okay?     _baka_ - idiot   
  
  


***************

  
    As the door shook, the sound of splintering wood could be heard. Almost as if it was being chopped down...? Eiji and the others jumped back a few feet, too startled to react right away. Eiji was the quickest one to shake himself out of it and yelled, "Everyone, push something against the door!"     The rest of the group was all too happy to oblige. Bookshelves, chairs, and a few other heavy objects were shoved up against the door to keep the intruders from getting in. When it was clear that their blockage wasn't going to work, they grabbed their weapons. Nagisa loaded bullets into the gun that hung at his side and flicked out his extremely large switchblade, Ellis whirled out her double Dirks, Sofia snatched her whip from her waist, Kayin unsheathed Excalibur, and Eiji unsheathed the Byakko no Tachi. The group took up their fighting stances and prepared for what would undoubtly come -- their first confrontation with the warriors of the Soshiki. However, Shizuku and David also heard the ruckus from the other room, and came running out to see the famed fighters, armed and ready, while their door was being broken down from the outside. Shizuku drew in her breath and growled something, reaching over and grabbing a thin stick-like pointed staff from a nearby corner, and took a common battle stance. David nodded at her, and revved his chainsaw a few times. The warriors waited, the only sound being heard was the sound of the door breaking down, slowly...     It collapsed.     From many, many slashes from quite a few different weapons. What was left of the chairs and obstacles was kicked aside like rubbish.     And silhouetted against the mid-afternoon light from outside, there stood Leon with his sword, Zola with her whip, Atahua with his blowdarts and tubes, and Rachael with her tonfas. In the lead was Vermilion, a sinister smile on his marked face. He regarded the fighters with icy contempt. "Fighters of the Toshindaibukai...it is a pleasure to see you again -- before your death."     "Death, nothing, Vermilion!!" yelled Eiji, raising his sword in front of his face. "Why are you back and what do you want from us now?"     Sofia smirked. "Did we not beat you badly enough the first time?"     One of Vermilion's eyebrows raised. "On the contrary. Now that the infernal adolescent Master and her cohort Uranus are out of the picture, the organization I worked for _all along_ is free to do it's bidding. All thanks to you...but forgive me if I don't show your more gratitude than I should," He cocked his guns, both at the same time. "And our lord wishes us to destroy you all." Suddenly, Vermilion noticed David, wielding his chainsaw with menace. "Why, it's the boy. Did you honestly think you could run and hide from us for long?"     David glared at him, the look on his face surprisingly cold for such a young boy. Then, out of nowhere, he muttered in a growling tone, "You...you and your goddamn accomplices...you destroyed everything that I loved...you destroyed my family, my home, my life...and you almost destroyed me." His voice rose. "But you didn't! I lived and that was the worst punishment!! YOU SON-OF-A-BITCH!!" In a blind rage and wielding his chainsaw with fury, David rushed at Vermilion, who just stood there, with an almost too calm smile on his face.     "No, David, don't!" Ellis screamed out.     "David-chan!" cried Shizuku in concern.     David raised his chainsaw, already flaming with ki, and prepared to strike down Vermilion, when Leon and Rachael jumped out from behind their commander and slashed David on both sides, then double-uppercutted him to the other side of the room. He was flung into the wall, and went down heavily. Shizuku gasped at their brutality, then ran over to him, saying, "David-chan, daijoubu?" However, he ignored her, and Shizuku glared up at the five invaders. "How dare you, monsters! Haven't you done enough -- tortured enough people?? Why can't you just leave him alone?"     This incited only a smirk from Vermilion. "Because he is our property. And he will bring our Overlord to Earth, to bring the destruction down upon everything."     "I will NEVER-"     "Shizuku."     Shizuku stared at David, who was trying to shake off his injuries. The youth got shakily to his knees, throwing an look of pure venom at the intruders. "I will get you...I WILL have my revenge...you cannot contain that evil for long...soon, everyone will know, and you will have nowhere to turn...Agon Teos is using you all, but you're all too blinded by the promise of power to see that..."     Vermilion mildly snickered, and turned to the other five fighters, Eiji, Kayin, Sofia, Ellis, and Nagisa. "Now that you're all allied, you just happen to be one of the greatest threats existing to our little plans. We're going to have to kill you all too, to make sure you don't get in our way."     "Oh yeah?" David growled from behind him. "What about the other two?"     "That's true..." Vermilion looked thoughtful. "Even we cannot manage to lay a hand on the great and legendary 'angels', so to speak. But someday, their guards will be down and we will destroy them both for good."     "Baka!" yelled Eiji. "There's no possible way you can defeat my niisan, and you know it!"     A sinister smile spread across his face. "But perhaps, if we targetted you, meddlesome freedom fighters that you are, they would come out of hiding. I have no doubt that they're nearby, and since they both take the most interest in you, I think it's only fitting to show them your deaths." He motioned to the four warriors standing behind him. "If you would..."     The fighters quickly focused on the four henchmen, who lept out in front of Vermilion and took battle stances.     Kayin's gaze rested on Zola. "You -- it was YOU who attacked me!"     Zola laughed coldly. "Indeed it was! I am Zola, warrior equivalent of the one named Sofia!!"     "Oh, so you think you can be MY equivalent, darling? I beg to speak differently!!" Stiletto heels clicking, Sofia raced towards Zola, who in turn shouted, "Golden Ballerina!" and spun through the air in an aerial move completely identical to Sofia's Aurora Revolution. This move knocked Sofia to the floor. As Ellis rushed over to help her up, Eiji, meanwhile, had his sights set on another warrior. "Leon...so you ARE with the Organization now, like it said!"     "Yes, and I have been given the power to finally destroy you, Eiji Shinjo!" Leon shot back, gripping his sword tightly. "I've been studying all your moves and finally have learned to copy them. Like this!" He quickly gathered his ki, and from his sword he shot a large fireball, one that looked exactly like Eiji's Rekkuzan. Eiji, however, dodged it, and it left a giant black scorch mark on the wall behind him. Eiji snarled and held up his sword to match his old rival's. "And you actually think you can beat me now, baka? That's a mistake you're gonna live to regret!"     Ellis broke away from Sofia, who managed to get up on her own and was squaring off with Zola again, and paced towards Atahua. "I know you. You're Atahua, aren't you?"     Atahua let out one of his annoyingly high-pitched laughs and answered back, "Quite correct. I am also your equal, Ellis, daughter of Gaia! Soon, he will be dead also!"     "What did you say?" Ellis charged at Atahua angrily, but was knocked back by Atahua's perfect rendition of her Lollipop. She fell hard to the ground, and gasped, "This isn't right...how can they mimic our moves so perfectly...?"     Rachael, meanwhile, was busy scanning the group, then shrugged. "Hm. I see Tracy isn't here. All the better for her sake, I suppose."     The fighters stopped their quarrels with their alternates, and managed to regroup with Nagisa, Shizuku and the wounded David, staring at the redheaded woman in surprise. Nagisa was the first to speak, pointing his switchblade at her. "So, you're must be Rachael. Tracy's countertype?"     "More than just that. And, since you're her new partner, when you do see Tracy again, give her this message for me: I'm coming after her, and I will kill her and have revenge for all that she's done."     "...So why don't you say it to my face, sister dear?"     "SISTER?!" All of the warriors turned to see Tracy standing in the doorway behind them. She was gripping her tonfas so tightly her knuckles were turning white, and looked rather upset. Rachael, however, appeared to be very calm and surprised that no one had known. "Yes. Fraternal twin sister, actually. I'm not surprised that you didn't tell them, Trae. You never gave a damn about me anyway."     Disregarding the last comment, Tracy looked away from her sister's dark glare and explained to her friends, "We were separated when we were children. My mother died giving birth to us, and my father gave Rachael up for adoption but kept me. I never knew I had a sister until my father told me on his deathbed. And I never knew why he had given her up either."     "That's how YOU claim it. The truth is our parents kicked me out because they didn't want me anymore. They wanted you. And I've had to succumb to THIS because of it!" Rachael's voice rose to an angry pitch. "You were always the favorite, ever since we were born. You were loved more than I was because I had nobody!!"     "Rachael, that's not true!" Tracy took a concerned step towards her sister.     Holding up one of her double-tonfas menacingly, Rachael snapped back, "Don't give me any of that bullshit, Tracy. I had to grow up alone, without anyone, and it's all your fault! I'm never going to forgive you! I hate you and I'll hate you forever for what you did!!"     "Rachael!!" Tracy cried out, and started towards her.     "Don't you dare come near me!" And before Tracy could react, Rachael shouted "Atomic Blow!" and struck Tracy with her own version of Tracy's Cardiac Arrest. Tracy was knocked to the floor and looked like someone had slapped her across the face, but it had nothing to do with the hit she just took.     "What a touching reunion," Vermilion finally remarked sarcastically. "Now, we'll just be taking David and be on our way. Come here, boy." He took a step toward David. Shizuku, Nagisa and Kayin - the only ones who didn't have their hands full with someone else - moved forward and stepped in front of David, their weapons drawn and poised.     "Well, four-eyes," Kayin began (Vermilion bristled quite noticeably), "if you wanna take this kid, you're gonna have to go through us first."     "Very well," Vermilion replied. "If you want to do things the hard way." With that, he called to his cohorts, who each disengaged in whatever battle of wits or brawn that they were occupied in and stood behind their superior. Waves of crackling dark energy began eminating from all five of them, merging together in one ominous black cloud of power. The fighters stared at them for a couple of minutes before Eiji finally caught on to what they were doing.     _A ki merge...like what we did once!_ "Everybody out!" he hollered. "NOW!!"     For once, not even David argued with him. They all tore out of the house like wildfire through the back door, and kept running. Just as they all lept to dive to the ground, there was a huge explosion, and everyone went flying as the house was blown apart behind them.

**********


	7. Chapter Six: Escape

**_In a world of darkness sanctioned by evil,  
where the only light of hope is a group of unlikely heroes,  
the legend's final chapter has begun..._**

**- TOH SHIN DEN III: Walking Into Ruin -**

_a Battle Arena Toshinden 3 fanfiction by Athena Asamiya and Kasumi Todoh_

  
**CHAPTER SIX: Escape**   
  
**Translations:**     _kusou_ - shit   
  
  


***************

  
    Everyone dove for the ground, covering their heads and lying flat as pieces of charred wood and glass rained around them, hitting the ground with loud shattering noises. Once the shower of debris had ceased, everyone began to get up, stiffly, brushing the pieces off of themselves.     "Is everyone all right?" Eiji asked, concerned.     "Well, I feel like I've been hit with a bloody sack of bricks," Kayin muttered in sarcastic reply. "But other than that, sure, I'm just swell."     "It looks like it is not over yet." Sofia glanced towards what remained of the house, a pile of charred rubble. The five Soshiki warriors were emerging, and none seemed to have even a scratch on them, despite the destruction that they had just been in the center of.     "Now, have you had enough yet?" Vermilion questioned in a mocking tone. "Are you ready to surrender the boy to us, or would you rather we do to you what we just did to that house?"     David had been dangerously quiet through all of this. Despite his previous injuries, he began slowly walking, partly staggering, towards him, talking in the same low, furious voice.     "You've ruined my life. You've threatened me and my friends. Now you've destroyed our home. I'm not standing for it anymore! YOU'RE DEAD!!"     David ran straight at Vermilion, fist outstretched with orange-and-crimson ki-flames shooting out of his body and weapon. For a split second, Ellis thought one of Vermilion's henchmen might intervene again, but they all seemed equally startled by this sudden attack, especially after blowing up the house. Vermilion was, without a doubt, the most surprised of them all, especially when David jumped forward, hit him in the back and causing him to stagger forwards, then nailed him with a fiery backflip that sent the trenchcoated commander flying. He landed on the ground with a loud thud, and for a few seconds no one moved. The fighters all stared at David, open-mouthed, and the Soshiki henchmen looked equally shocked at the young boy's display of power.     "Wow, you're good," Ellis said to David. She was unsure if he heard her or not, but it didn't seem likely. He was only staring stonily at Vermilion, lying face-down on the rubble-scattered ground.     _With that much power..._ Eiji pondered to himself, _what _else_ can he do? Is that why they want him so badly?_ The leader of the Toshindaibukai fighters regarded the boy, ki-flames finally beginning to subside, with a mix of interest and astoundment. _Someone so young, yet able to handle ki so well..._     Finally, Zola and Atahua shook themselves out of their stupor and ran over to their fallen boss, and in a couple minutes Vermilion was on his feet again, rubbing his jaw with his tinted glasses tilted on the bridge of his nose. For a second he too just stared at David.     "Very well," he said at last, though sounding rather reluctant. "You may keep the boy for now. But let me tell you, that you can't protect him forever. The time will come when you'll let your guard down. We shall return. Two days time. Only two days, warriors. Be prepared for the end." He turned and teleported out, with Zola and Atahua following. Leon shot a withering glare at Eiji (who shot a particularly nasty gaze back), and then he turned and headed out after the others. But Rachael held back. She gave her sister an icy look and said coldly, "You got off easy this time, Trae. But next time I will have my revenge for all the suffering you've caused me. Let me guarantee you, next time..." Then she walked off in the direction of the others.     "Racha--!" Tracy started to cry out, but she was already gone.     Meanwhile, Shizuku and David were looking at what little remained of their house. Shizuku sighed and murmured, "I should have known that they would resort to this..."     "The Soshiki will pay for this," Nagisa muttered fiercely, putting a hand on Shizuku's shoulder. "We'll take them down, I promise we'll get everyone on the force working on this."     "It would've been too dangerous to stay here anyway," Eiji said, coming over to them with Ellis right behind. "Now that they know where you live."     "At least I've got insurance on it," Shizuku added, looking at Eiji with a weak smile.     "I don't see what good that's going to do now," David replied darkly, folding his arms.     "You can have your revenge on the Soshiki later," said Kayin. "We've waited this long. And one of the things those assholes are short on is patience."     Sofia nodded in apt agreement. "Right now I think we have more important matters on our hands, such as finding you two a place to stay tonight."     "That's right," Ellis added. "Let's go, everyone."

***************

    Half an hour later, the Toshindeners had managed to set David and Shizuku up in the same hotel where they were staying, the Osaka Daiichi Hotel. Sofia had managed to save the laptop from the explosion, and she insisted on going back into the Soshiki files. Soon she was typing away at it again in the privacy of her room, while the whole group, consisting of Eiji, Kayin, Ellis, Tracy, Nagisa, Shizuku and David, watched behind her.     "We have all heard enough about its members," Sofia said, not taking her eyes off the screen, "so let's go somewhere else, shall we?" In almost no time at all she had hacked her way into another file, one that was labelled, 'Origin of the Soshiki.'     "This oughta be interesting," Kayin whispered to Eiji, who nodded.     "Listen," said Sofia, reading out loud to the group. "It says here, 'When the sea runs red with blood, the Overlord will descend to Earth. On that day, the light shall be swallowed by the darkness.'"     "What the hell does THAT mean?" Tracy demanded, still bitter over the earlier confrontation.     "Keep reading and maybe we'll find out," Nagisa answered back sharply. Tracy decided to shut up and seethe on her own.     "'Only the one with a pure heart can hold the immense spiritual power of the Toshin, Agon Teos.'"     "Toshin?" questioned Ellis. "What's that? Isn't it the namesake of the Toshindaibukai?"     "Toshin is Japanese," Eiji explained, "for 'fighting god'. It's another old legend from ancient times."     "That's why the Toshindaibukai tournament was also known as 'The Grand Martial Arts Tournament of the Fighting God'," Kayin added. "Helluva long name."     Sofia continued, "'Eternal life and ultimate power to he who is reborn.'"     "'A young person with a pure heart', huh?" Ellis murmured. She turned to David. "They're talking about you, aren't they?"     David said nothing. He just narrowed his eyes and nodded.     "The 'eternal life and ultimate power' part doesn't sound so bad," Kayin put in. Then he glanced at David and the look on his face. "Kidding, just kidding! Damn..."     Tracy, who had been deep in thought, sat up suddenly, seeing something on the screen. "Um, guys...check that out."     A new, flashing message had appeared on the screen. It read as this:

_     To all members of the Soshiki,

    Soon will come the time to awaken our Overlord. In a days' time, the reckoning will come to this world and all will know the omnipotent power of the Toshin, Agon Teos.  
    The boy must be captured at all costs. Forsake everything and destroy the Toshin warriors, so they do not get in our way again!

    - Abel

_     "Who is he?" asked Sofia, almost to herself or the computer. Shizuku placed a hand on David's shoulder gently. "David-chan, do you know?"     David uncrossed his arms and turned away from the group. "Yes. But I don't know much of him. He's the leader of the Soshiki. The one who's plotting all this, to resurrect the Toshin and destroy the world."     "In a days' time..." whispered Ellis. "They're going to try _tomorrow?_"     "Looks like it."     "Kusou..." growled Nagisa, clenching his hand into a fist involuntarily. "If only we knew where they were, we could find them and take them down!"     "I will try to find its location on here," Sofia answered back, "but it's unlikely." She tapped away for a few minutes, then sighed and proclaimed, "No. There is nothing about it."     "Goddammit!" Tracy snarled, banging her fist on a table. "How are we supposed to stop `em if we can't find `em? We can't wait for them to come to us, that's instant death!"     "They likely will, though. So what's the big deal about all this, then?" said Kayin annoyedly. "They can't bring this Toshin to Earth if they don't have David. We'll just have to hide him away and take them down before they can find him."     David glared darkly at the swordsman. "I don't run from my battles, especially this one."     "So you think we do?" Kayin retorted.     "Guys," Ellis said, quickly getting between them. "Now's not the time to be starting any fights."     "With the 'reckoning' only a day away," said Eiji, "if the Soshiki really wants to have David by then, then they're going to start getting desperate in their attempts to get him. As long as he's with us, they'll come."     "There is more here on the history of it," Sofia interrupted. "This is not the first time the Soshiki has attempted to free the Toshin. They succeeded in doing it once before, about a thousand years ago to be exact. However, the forces of good managed to drive the evil force back to where it was held before, deep beneath the Earth. But before that, the Soshiki captured and saved the blood of the Toshin. It says here that drinking the blood can grant you powers. That is why the Soshiki has such strong warriors. They modelled them after us, with our moves and attacks."     "Drinking blood?" Ellis shook her head, making a face. "Yuck! What are these people? Vampires?"     "I guess that explains why those fighters we fought today were so hard to beat," Eiji muttered. "Superhuman power. Should've known he'd try something like that."     "Oh!" Sofia cried out then, and everyone turned to look. There was another message on the screen.

_     Fighters of the Toshindaibukai,

    The end is near. You cannot win.  
    **The reckoning is coming. YOU WILL ALL DIE.**

    - With deepest regrets, Vermilion

_     The computer screen went blank.     Sighing, Sofia turned to the group. "They knew we were reading those files. Probably all along."     "Damn it all to hell!" Kayin yelled, wishing desperately he had something to punch in frustration. "How come they're always one step ahead of us!?"     Nagisa shook his head. "They probably won't try anything tonight. It's unlikely they know where we are. We should all get a quick supper and then try to get some sleep."     Everyone unanimously agreed, and, weapons concealed just in case, headed down to the hotel restaurant. Ellis followed last, casting one last glance at the room they had just been in. Then she stopped. Was it her imagination, or did she see a shadowy figure dart away from the window? She turned back and headed down the hall, shaking her head.     _Maybe I'm just being paranoid._

****************

    Zola headed into the Soshiki headquarters, preparing herself for the punishment she was about to receive. Abel had been less than happy when they had returned earlier without the boy, and Zola knew he was going to come equally hard on all five them. However, she had managed to skip out early with an excuse of going find the new place where they were hiding David. Being top spy for Soshiki, she hoped the new information which she had discovered on David's whereabouts would get her off the hook a little.     "I cannot believe what I'm hearing!" Abel was thundering at the rest of his henchmen as Zola walked in. "Not only did you botch the mission and return empty-handed, you revealed our existance known to our enemies, not to mention anyone else who happened to see that explosion! I expected such actions from my lower-ranking lieutenants, not from my five strongest warriors!"     The other warriors stood bowed before their master, their heads lowered. Even though Vermilion was still stinging from a red welt that stood out from the usual crimson marks on his face, he said in his typical gravelly tone, "I caught them hacking into our computer system, Abel, but it is undetermined where they are."     "That only makes it worse, Vermilion!" boomed Abel. "They now possibly know our plans!"     Hastily, Zola dashed in and dropped to one knee. "I have news that should please you, Abel-sama," she ventured. When Abel glared at her, she continued. "I have discovered the new location of our target. He and Shizuku have taken up rooms on the first floor of the Osaka Daiichi Hotel, in Osaka. The boy is staying in a room by himself, and judging by his nature, I doubt that any of his allies are staying at the same hotel. We should have no problems taking him this time."     After a period of silence under a relentless glare, Abel replied, "Excellent. I'm glad to see one of my warriors has made good use of the Toshin's blood."     "Thank you, Abel-sama."     "Abel-sama," Atahua said, stepping forth. "It would draw much less attention to just send one of us. Allow me to capture David for you. Give me a chance to prove myself to you. That boy shall not escape me."     "Very well. I shall give you this chance to show how good you are. However, if you disappoint me this time..."     "I won't fail you," Atahua promised as he bowed and disappeared out the door. As soon as he was gone, Vermilion protested, "How can you let him go off by himself? He's just a boy. There's no way he can do alone."     "Everyone deserves a chance to prove their worth," Abel replied stiffly. "He certainly can't do much worse than what you've done today, can he? Don't question my decisions again."     "Yes."

**********


	8. Chapter Seven: Intruder

**_In a world of darkness sanctioned by evil,  
where the only light of hope is a group of unlikely heroes,  
the legend's final chapter has begun..._**

**- TOH SHIN DEN III: Walking Into Ruin -**

_a Battle Arena Toshinden 3 fanfiction by Athena Asamiya and Kasumi Todoh_

  
**CHAPTER SEVEN: Intruder**   
  
**Translations:**     _zettai ni dame da!_ - no way!     _oyasumi_ - good night     _-chan_ - honourific used for close friends, children or pets     _-kun_ - honourific used for respect towards younger colleagues     _domo_ - thank you   
  
  


****************

  
    About two hours later after dinner, David was getting ready for bed when he heard a knock on his door. Although it was getting quite late at night, he seemingly wasn't too suspicious. After all, he had been attacked and stalked by the Soshiki so much, he knew they wouldn't try to capture him in public. "Come in."     The door opened and Ellis entered quietly, like a small green-haired shadow. David's eyes flicked towards her once, then away again. "Thought you'd gone to bed already like the rest."     "Oh, I'm out in a few minutes," she said hastily, sitting down on a nearby armchair. "I thought we could just...talk for a while, first."     David's usual snarky attitude returned, and he turned his back on her, glaring out the room's window-doors into the starry night. "Huh. The way I see it, there's not really anything we can talk about that you'd understand."     Ellis shook her head. "That's not true. I never got to tell you, I know what it's like to have to grow up without any real family. I..." Her voice dropped to a quieter tone. "I lost my parents when I was really young, too."     "Is that was this is all about, then?" David asked her suspiciously, looking over his shoulder at her. "They didn't all just send you to find out info from me?"     Ellis suddenly realized she had just blurted out the real reason why she'd come. She sighed and fiddled with the armchair's covering. "I just thought I could help. I mean, I can't totally sympathize with you. Obviously, I didn't have as much pain in my life as you did, since I had people to care for me..."     David continued to regard her for a moment, and then looked away again. "Yeah, at least you were adopted. And it turned out your father was still alive. I've been alone for most of my life. No one ever looked after me that way. The people at the orphanage where I lived didn't even care about me. The orphanage was really run by the Soshiki, so they just wanted me for their blood rituals. It's not the same as what you went through."     Ellis nodded. "I know it's not. But you know what got me through those years without my parents? It was partly because my gypsy troupe was like a second family to me, but it was also partly because I finally decided that I should get on with my life. I still thought about them a lot, but I realized they wouldn't want me to be sad forever." Her bright blue eyes met David's cold ones. "And I don't think your family would either."     "So you're saying I should forget about them?"     "No, of course not. You never forget about your family. What I'm saying is that you should get on with things, like I did."     David was silent for a long while after this, then finally said, "You really think so?"     "It worked for me," said Ellis. "But turning your back on anyone who tries to care about you isn't the best approach to it."     David snorted. "Nobody cares about me."     "That's not true, either. Shizuku cares a lot about you," she said with a smile. "We all can tell. And I care about you."     "What? You...you do?" He looked at Ellis in surprise, with almost a hint of hope. She nodded at him seriously. "I care enough to want to be your friend, if you'll let me."     David's previously surprised exterior slipped away quickly, replaced by a mask of contempt. "Hah! Friendships don't mean a thing. Once something better comes along they disappear like that." David snapped his fingers.     Ellis was shocked at this, standing up from the chair and taking a few concerned steps towards him. "No, they don't! Why would you think something like that?"     David looked down at the floor, refusing to meet her eyes. "I used to have one friend. His name was 'Judgement', or at least, that was what he went by. He was the only person I could relate to, and the only friend I had, growing up. Then he became obsessed with becoming stronger and finding the ultimate power. Finally, he joined the Soshiki, betraying me, our beliefs, and leaving me out in the cold. He was the one who fooled me, made it possible for THEM to try and kill me...all for the glory of that bastard god of theirs."     "Oh..." The gypsy girl pursed her lips, then looked away sadly. "I can see why that could destroy someone's belief in friendships. But I'm not like that at all, and neither are any of the others. Trust me, I know them. We're not going to abandon you or Shizuku, David. We want to protect you from the Soshiki, like we all said we would. And we wouldn't be doing this for you if we didn't care."     "Really?" David stared at her for a second, and then did something that he hadn't done in the last nine years. He smiled. "Don't even know why I just told you all this."     "If you didn't have such a thorny attitude, maybe people would open up to you more often, and you to them."     "Maybe." David suddenly looked slightly embarrassed. "Um...Ellis...do you, um, you know...is it you and...?" He glanced away hastily, and it almost seemed that some red creeped into his cheeks. "Um, I mean, not that I care, but--"     Ellis looked to the floor, scuffing at it slowly with one of her feet, understanding what he was trying to say. "Yes..." Although there was no response from David, Ellis blushed fiercely. "Look, it took us both by surprise. Pretty much everyone knows, and that's why we get teased about it so often."     "Knowing that Amoh guy, you probably would."     "Oh, Kayin's just a lot like you. That's probably why you don't get along that well with him. Don't be offended; he doesn't really get along with anybody, except maybe Eiji-kun, and that's only at times." Ellis saw the time on a nearby analog clock, it was gaining on eleven o'clock. "Well, I should get going. Think about what I said. I'll see you in the morning. `Night."     David nodded. "Good night."     As soon as Ellis left the room and shut the door, she heard a voice from the other side of her. "You really meant all that."     Ellis closed her eyes and smiled. "Of course. You shouldn't have even doubted it. What're you doing, listening in on my conversation?"     "I was worried. He likes you."     "Maybe he does." Her sapphire eyes opened again, moving towards him in almost a sly manner. "You're jealous, aren't you?"     "Zettai ni dame da! Why would I be? He's a kid."     "And I'm not? I was sixteen when we met, and I'll be nineteen next year, you know."     "Not as much a kid as I first thought, then." He walked past her, touching her hand lightly in the process. "Oyasumi, Ellis-chan."     "Oyasumi, Eiji-kun."

****************

    Just after midnight, most of Osaka Daiichi Hotel was dark and silent, when a hand reached out of the bushes and slid open the outside doors of David's first-floor room. Atahua silently entered and looked around the darkened room, until his keen eyes fell on the bed where David was sleeping. He walked quietly over to the bed, then whipped off the sheets and grabbed David.     "Hee hee hee! I've got you now, boy!"     That woke David up all right. He let out a yelp and struggled to break free as Atahua dragged him out of bed. But the Soshiki fighter was surprising strong, and he quickly grasped David's arms in a vice-like grip behind his back, and then in a breath-shortening headlock as well. Atahua started shoving David towards the open doors.     "Don't bother struggling, it's useless! You will help us release our Overlord to Earth!"     **Ka-pwing!** Something shot through the air and embedded itself into the wall next to Atahua. Both turned to look at it. Even in the darkness, it appeared to be some sort of dagger, moonlight glistening off it as a silver sliver of light. More specifically, a Dirk.     Atahua quickly looked behind him. There, leaning against the frame of the open doorway, dressed in a white camisole and baggy flannel pants, stood Ellis. In one hand, her other Dirk gleamed in the pale light. The other hand was clenched into a tight fist. "Don't you guys ever give up?"     "Get lost, girl."     "So I take it this isn't room service. Attacking a person that's unarmed isn't very fair, you know," Ellis repremanded with an innocent smile, showing off the Dirk in her right hand. "I, on the other hand, happen to have my weapons with me, so I propose that you take me on instead."     "My fight isn't with you. Another time, perhaps, after the reckoning," Atahua answered with a huff, and gave David another shove towards the window.     Ellis stalked forwards. "We know about your reckoning plans. What is it all about, anyway?"     Atahua snorted. "Like I'd tell you."     "So you claim to be my equal, let's see you prove it!"     Atahua paused in thought, then answered, "Very well." He let go of David (who hit the floor coughing and choking from the headlock he had just been in) and pulled out his two long sticklike weapons. Quick as lightning, Ellis yanked her other Dirk out of the wall and got into her fighting stance, only seconds before Atahua came rushing straight at her. Ellis quickly cartwheeled out of the way as he ended the charge at the spot where she'd been standing, and watched as the native boy jumped skyward in a quick, sparkling uppercut.     _Almost like my Soar Wind,_ she thought to herself as she knocked him out of the air with her Arc Slash. Atahua jumped to his feet almost as soon as he'd landed, smashing a lamp to the floor in the process. He then turned around and, yelling something in a language Ellis couldn't even identify, began kicking the air. This attack startled her, and she had no time to block. The momentum carried him through the air and delivered several sharp kicks to Ellis' head, the last of which sent her flying into a small table, and both of them went down with a loud crash. However, she quickly got up, shaking her head in an attempt to clear it.     "Lollipop!" she called as she gathered shimmering yellow ki into her knives and twirled around in a circle, releasing the energy in a display that lit up the darkened room. The attack should've sent Atahua flying into the wall, but the boy blocked, and her attack had no effect. Atahua immediately jumped up and fired something at her from mid-air. Ellis quickly made a small dodge to the right, and the object lodged itself in the remains of the table, only half an inch from her shoulder. She stared at it. A dart. Those sticks Atahua was carrying were blowdart tubes!     "Hey, watch it with those things," Ellis demanded angrily, although she knew he wasn't listening to her. Jumping up and falling back into her defensive stance, Ellis noticed that Atahua was beginning to charge up his ki. Realizing he was doing the same moves as right before Shizuku's house got blown up, she braced herself for what she anticipated to be a large, and very painful, super move.     Even though Ellis tried to be ready for it, nothing could've prepared her for came next. Atahua spun around in circle and bent down, saying something in that typical gibberish language of his. A bunch of skulls, pure illusions created out of ki, seemed to jump and explode out of his body. They struck Ellis hard, launching her so she bounced off the ceiling and slammed into one of the walls. Coming back down to earth, Ellis lay still for a moment, and just as Atahua was about to walk away, she got up, more slowly this time, wiping some blood off her lower lip. "What...what WAS that?!"     Atahua cocked his head at her. "You mean you've never seen a Soul Bomb before?"     "Soul Bomb?"     "And I thought you and the others were such martial arts masters," he replied, shaking his head. "Anyone can do a Soul Bomb. But enough talk, I'm getting bored. It's about time we ended this, gypsy girl."     Ellis picked up the Dirks from where she had dropped them, and resumed her battle stance. "Yes, let's."     The little discussion had created a lull in the battle long enough for Ellis to gain some of a second wind and begin gathering energy to pull off one of her more powerful attacks. But just then a blast echoed through the room. Both fighters looked for the source, and found it to be a small, smoking pistol which the now-recovered David held in his left hand. In his right hand he held up his chainsaw, which he had reclaimed from under his bed.     "Leave her alone!" he barked at Atahua. "I'm the one you want!"     Ellis' face showed gladness that he was all right, but it was also mixed with a look of confusion. "I didn't know you carried a gun."     "For extra protection," David replied. "When you've got asses like HIM after you, well, better safe than sorry." He took up a fighting stance. "I'll take it from here. Go, before you get hurt even more."     "But-"     "I said go!" David was already charging towards Atahua with an uppercut of his own, and quickly followed by slashing at him with his chainsaw as Atahua came down. Atahua sprung back up quickly and paced towards David, but all that time he had made the fatal mistake of turning his attention, and his back, away from Ellis, who had not left.     _"Kiss Kiss Kiss!!"_     Atahua turned around again, but not fast enough to do anything but watch as Ellis shot towards him, trailing golden ki-sparks. Ellis struck her countertype over and over again, at least half a dozen times, first with one Dirk and then the other. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity of pounding to Atahua, she thrust both Dirks straight out in front of her, sending him crashing to the floor beside the bed. Suddenly they heard voices and footsteps far off down the hallway, probably investigating the source of the shotgun blast. Ellis turned back to Atahua.     "If I were you, I'd leave quite quickly, right about now."     Atahua looked at the pair for a second, then muttered, "This isn't over, bitch," and vaulted through the open window and was gone. Ellis stared out the window for a second, but then the pain and exhustion of her battle overwhelmed her, and she slumped down on one knee. David ran over to her.     "Are you all right?" he asked, sounding worried.     She looked up at him, breathing hard. "I'll be fine. I've been through tougher battles."     "How did you-"     "...Know what was going on? We all had a feeling those Soshiki creeps would try something, so I'm staying in the room across the hall, instead of on the higher floors like the others. You're just lucky I'm a light sleeper."     "But how did you get into my room?" David confusedly asked. "The door was locked."     Ellis held something shiny and metallic between her thumb and forefinger. "Shizuku gave me the spare keys."     "You did all this for me? Why?"     "I told you before, friends care about each other, and they look out for each other." She winked. "Especially in situations like this one."     At that moment, the door burst open, and Shizuku rushed in, staff in hand.     "Is everything all right?" she asked.     Ellis looked at David and grinned. "Nothing we couldn't handle."

****************

    "What do you have to say for yourself!?" Abel thundered at Atahua, concluding a long lecture which had been spoken at top volume, which, coming from Abel, was almost akin to a sonic boom. The boy stood before the Organization leader, tending to his wounds while Vermilion looked on. His expression was unreadable, but he wasn't smiling.     Atahua looked up at Abel. "I admit I have failed and disappointed you, Abel-sama, but if you would please give me another chance, I have come up with a new plan, one that will make David come to us."     Abel folded his arms and regarded him with annoyed contempt. "Very well, proceed. However, since you already have two strikes against you, this plan had better be a good one, for your sake."     "Thank you." Atahua stood up. "As you know, I had the boy and everything was going according to plan until my original, Ellis, ruined everything. I could tell by the way she fought that she has feelings for David, and I also noticed by the way David stood up for her that he's beginning to feel the same way about her. It seems he's starting to make friends with the fighters who are protecting him. My plan is this: why not capture Ellis, or one of the other Toshindeners, and force David to surrender to us in return for their safety?"     "And what makes you think such an idea would succeed where your others failed?"     "Actually, that might work," Vermilion interrupted. "In all my experience with the Toshinden fighters, I've learned that they tend to protect and look out for each other. Emotions are their weak spot. If we were to take one of them hostage, they'll probably do what we say, as long as we don't hurt their little friend. And that includes handing over David."     "I see," Abel replied. "Well, if you can make this plan work, then I'll leave the necessary arrangements up to you, Vermilion. Don't forget the usual double-cross as well, and destroy the Toshin fighters."     "Domo, Abel." Vermilion bowed to him, then motioned Atahua to come. The boy obediantly followed.     Unknown to all, however, was that Leon had been eavesdropping on their entire conversation.     _Stupid fool. First sending Atahua to get that boy, actually believing that he would succeed. And now putting Vermilion in change of this new plan, when _I_ should be the one to carry it out. Verm thinks he can beat those fighters, huh? Well, no one should have the privelege of killing Eiji Shinjo but me! I'll show them...I'll destroy Vermilion and take his place, and then I'll kill Abel too and become the new leader!_ Annoyed, Leon slunk off into the shadows.  
    _Just you wait...I _will_ win._

**********


	9. Chapter Eight: Sacrifice

**_In a world of darkness sanctioned by evil,  
where the only light of hope is a group of unlikely heroes,  
the legend's final chapter has begun..._**

**- TOH SHIN DEN III: Walking Into Ruin -**

_a Battle Arena Toshinden 3 fanfiction by Athena Asamiya and Kasumi Todoh_

  
**CHAPTER EIGHT: Sacrifice**   
  
**Translations:**     _nan desu te?_ - what are you saying?     _shimatta_ - dammit     _doko na no?_ - where are you?     _isoge_ - hurry up / let's go     _kisama_ - bastard     _me o samashite!_ - open your eyes!     _hanashite!_ - let me go! / unhand me! etc.     _yada!_ - no! / don't!   
  
  


****************

  
    "I guess our hunch was right on," Kayin muttered as he and Eiji looked around at David's room the next morning. David and Ellis had uprighted all the furniture that had been overturned, but there was still quite a bit of evidence of the previous night's battle.     "We were lucky there was only one of them this time," David replied. He smiled, but it seemed to be more directed at Eiji in particular, and it didn't seem that friendly either. "It was also pretty lucky that Ellis showed up when she did. She's pretty good."     Eiji's look turned to that of dark annoyance under the younger boy's satisfied gaze. Taking a deep breath and trying to calm himself, Eiji asked, "Where is Ellis-chan, anyway?"     "In her room. She said something about not getting out of bed for a while, and that we should start without her."     "Fine." Eiji turned on his heel and left the room, Kayin following after. The latter was quite amused. "Makes you wanna hit that brat, doesn't it?"     Eiji started to punch the wall, but, remembering that this was a hotel, stopped just in time. "That's your answer."     "Jealous much?"     "You could say that."     "If you feel that strongly about her, why not ask her out?"     "Well...you know...we're not...not really-"     "So? Start now. She's a fine lass. If you hadn't snagged her I would've taken her myself."     "Shut up."

****************

    Once breakfast was over in the small hotel restaurant, Eiji got right down to business with the rest of the group. "We need to figure out what we're going to do from here. As much as I hate to admit it myself, I don't think we can hide David from the Soshiki. These guys are good, way better than the Himitsu Kessha. And the reckoning, or whatever the hell it is, is supposed to be today. They'll be making their move soon."     "I s'pose putting Davey-boy on the first plane out of Japan wouldn't help much, huh?" Tracy replied, leaning back in her chair and folding her arms.     "Hey, I already told you, I don't run from my battles," David retorted. "And don't call me that if you wanna live to see tomorrow."     "Yo, Iwashiro," Tracy whispered to her partner. "He been takin' lessons from you?"     Before Nagisa could answer (he just glared instead), Sofia finished the question. "I doubt that would work. They have found him twice already." She glanced over at David. "It is extremely obvious that they are not letting you go without a fight."     "I could've told you that. They chose me to be the host; no one else will work now."     "We've all seen what these organizations are capable of," Eiji said, looking thoughtful. "What we really need now is some sort of plan to deal with them."     "Here's a plan," David interrupted. "We go into the Soshiki headquarters and take care of them all like that." He snapped his fingers. "All this talk is getting us nowhere while they're getting closer. We need action, not some dumb plan. They think they can get the better of us, but if we make the jump on them today, before the sacrificial ceremony, they won't know what hit them."     "That's risky," Kayin put in. "They could capture you anyway while we're in their headquarters."     "So? I can fight. I escaped once and I'm NOT going back."     "David-chan," Shizuku began quietly, as if she'd heard this numerous times before. Nagisa leaned over the table. "If you ask me, I think the kid's got the right idea. It's obvious that this Soshiki isn't going to wait for us to finish our discussion, and if they ARE going to attempt to resurrect some sort of god today, then action's better than just sitting around talking."     "I wouldn't mind a bit o' action myself," Tracy agreed with a grin. Everyone else just sighed and exchanged reproachful looks. However, Shizuku cast Tracy a concerned glance. "Tracy-san, are you really the sister of one of the Soshiki's warriors?"     Tracy looked shocked for a second, then hung her head. "Yeah. It's true, all right. That really was Rachael, not some clone or man-machine."     "Do you have any idea why she would turn to them?"     "Revenge, no doubt. That's what she said."     Nagisa looked over at his American partner. "It's probably going to be hard for you, but...we have to get rid of them. All of them. Even if one's left, it all could come back."     Tracy sighed. "I know...I'll try my best, but it might not be good enough."     Sofia smiled encouragingly. "Tracy, you have always been one of our best allies and fighters. I am sure you will do fine."     "I guess so," Tracy murmured. As the rest went back to talking about their new plan, Tracy sat in lapsed thought.     _Rachael, I'll make sure you don't die. I'll bring you back, I promise._

****************

    Ellis awoke sometime during then. Glancing at the digital clock's glowing face on her table, she muttered, "Geez, it's 10:30 already. I still wanna sleep." Rolling over, she attempted to fall asleep again, but instead lay wide awake.     _What is going on, anyway? A new organization, David, new allies, the reckoning, another battle beginning...what are we going to do? According to David, it's not going to be as easy as the other two times, and those were definitely NOT easy._ She closed her blue eyes sadly.     _Today could be the end of the world..._     Finally deciding to get up, Ellis lazily rose out of bed, shedding her night wear and pulling on some street clothes from her suitcase.     _Maybe I should go for a walk...I don't think the others are back anyway, and it might help calm me down. I'll leave them a note, just in case._

****************

    Finally, after much negotiation, the battle plan was set: the entire group was to head out to the Soshiki's headquarters (with Shizuku's directions) later that morning, try to sneak in as quietly as they could, and attempt to stop the "reckoning" and take out the Soshiki's leaders before they got to them.     Eiji rose from the table, satisfied. "All right then, it's settled. I'm going to go tell Ellis-chan."     David got up too. "I'll go with you."     Eiji looked slightly annoyed, but sighed and said, "Fine." He turned to the rest of the group. "Minna, see you all later. Meet outside in an hour, get your battle outfits on and remember your weapons." He winked one red eye. "This is going be a fight no one's gonna forget."     As David and Eiji headed down the long corridor to Ellis's first-floor room, there was obviously enough thick tension and heavy silence between them to choke. Out of nowhere, David muttered (more to himself than Eiji), "Sure hope Ellis hasn't decided to go anywhere."     Eiji looked confused. "What do you mean?"     "What I'm saying is, today's the reckoning. Obviously, the Soshiki knows I'm here, and they're gonna be out in full force to get ahold of me. But..." he shook his head, "any one of you would do well as a bargaining chip. I know how these guys work."     Eiji abruptly whirled around to face the boy. "Nan desu te?!? You mean, if Ellis-chan's left to go outside or something...she could be captured?"     "Well, no shit, Sherlock. You're smarter than you look."     Eiji disregarded this and started running towards her room. "Ellis-chan!!"     He flung open the unlocked door to her room to find it empty, with a note on the table.

_     Hey everyone,     I've gone for a walk. Don't wait up for me, I won't be too long.     - Ellis
_     "Shimatta!!" Eiji growled in frustration. "They could have gotten her by now!"     David nodded. "We'll have to hurry. I'll get everyone together, you go looking for her. Okay?"     "Got it!" Eiji sped out of the room and down the hallway, out the door to search for what could be the Soshiki's newest victim.

****************

    It was a bright summer morning, and Ellis, who was walking on the hotel beach near a forested grove, was enjoying the sunshine and warmth the day was bringing. She smiled, wishing that Eiji was here with her to enjoy this. Suddenly, her eyes widened -- she had heard something. It was coming a pathway to her left, and it sounded like a faint voice, calling for help. And the voice sounded pretty desperate.     Due to her usual helpful nature, Ellis headed off in that direction without a second thought, searching for the source of the voice. She paused again and listened hard. Either she or the voice was getting closer. She determined it to be almost right near her.     _I should probably go back and get Eiji-kun and the others,_ she thought quickly. But the voice came again, sounding more pleading than before, and she hesitated.     _There wouldn't be enough time. Sounds like it's serious, and I'm perfectly capable of handling things myself. It might not be anything anyway. No sense bothering them until I'm sure what it is._ With that Ellis quickened her pace, dashed down the forest path, turned a corner, and froze in her tracks.     There, blocking her way, stood all five menacing Soshiki warriors: Vermilion, Leon, Zola, Rachael and Atahua, each with their weapons drawn and ready.     "Well, well," Vermilion said mockingly. "I knew you Toshindaibukai fighters were gullible, but it seems you're the most gullible of them all. Not to mention stupid. Rushing into an unknown battle all by yourself? Not exactly what I'd expect from the daughter of Gaia."     "At least I'm not gullible enough to underestimate my opponents," Ellis shot back as she gauged the distance between her and the hotel door. Too far, but if she ran fast enough... "Which I know is something you often do."     "No? You and your friends were stupid enough to walk right into our trap. Getting what we want has never been easier." He smiled coldly. "The reckoning is today. You'll be a good bargaining piece in exchange for the boy."     "You haven't won yet!" Ellis turned and made a break for it.     "Leaving so soon?" Zola said, wrapping her whip around Ellis's ankles. The young girl stumbled and fell to the ground. "The party's just getting started."     As Ellis started to get up, she found Vermilion standing over her, wielding his guns with a wicked grin. Then came a voice that startled them all.     "Ellis-chan!! Ellis-chan, doko na no? Ellis-chan!!"     "Eiji-kun," she whispered.     "It's him!" snarled Leon, getting ready to fight. Vermilion put out a hand in front of him. "No, Leon, the Shinjo boy is mine to deal with."     "No! It's my duty to destroy him...I'm his countertype!" Leon protested angrily. Seeing this as a positive distraction, Ellis knew she had to warn Eiji somehow.     "Eiji-kun, watch out!!" she screamed as loud as she could. "It's a-"     "That's enough out of you," Rachael growled, and struck her hard in the back of the head with the bottom of one of her tonfas. Ellis's world exploded with light and pain, then slowly faded into darkness.

****************

    "Ellis-channnnn!!" Eiji yelled, getting more desperate by the minute. _Shit,_ he thought, _this can't be good. Where is she...? If anything's happened to her, I'll-_     Suddenly, both his thoughts and cries were interrupted by a loud scream. "Eiji-kun, watch out!! It's a-" The rest of it ended with short cry of pain, and then silence.     "ELLIS!!" Eiji dashed in the direction of her voice as fast as he could.     The rest of the fighters appeared outside, in their battle costumes with their weapons in hand, just in time to hear Ellis's cry, then Eiji's yell shortly afterwards.     "That was Ellis!" David cried.     "It sounded like it came from that way," Shizuku said, jabbing her pointed staff in the direction of one path. "Isoge!"     They all hurried down the pathway, but found nothing. No sign of anyone, let alone Ellis or Eiji. Kayin ran forwards, looking from one direction to another. "Blast! Eiji's not here either! What the hell happened?"     Suddenly, a figure turned the corner and smashed right into Kayin, nearly knocking him over. Kayin, enraged, grabbed the other's collar. "You damn Soshiki punk-ass, I'll kill-"     "Kayin-chan, it's me!" Kayin calmed down enough to see that he was nearly throttling Eiji. Letting Eiji go with one hand behind his head, Kayin laughed nervously and said, "Sorry `bout that, Eiji-chan, took me by surprise..."     "Yeah, well, same here. I hope that's not the way you treat everyone you run into." Eiji turned the rest of the group, concerned. "Have any of you seen Ellis-chan?"     "No," David answered. "We heard her voice, and then yours..." He stopped, cutting himself off abruptly. "Shit...they're here."     As if on cue, from behind them, came an all-too-familiar voice:     "So, warriors, we meet again. This time I can assure that victory is ours."     Everyone turned around in time to see Vermilion materialize behind them. Simultaniously, they all reached for their weapons. Eiji snarled in rage. "Kisama, what have you done with Ellis??" He unsheathed his sword and took a warning step towards Vermilion.     Ignoring this, Vermilion quietly cautioned in a mocking tone, "I wouldn't do that if I were you." He motioned behind him, as his accomplices appeared next to him. Rachael was holding Ellis, whose eyes were wide with fear, and Leon held the tip of his sword to her throat. "Unless you want something particularly nasty to happen to your little girlfriend," he finished.     Eiji stopped in his tracks, but said one demand in return. "Let her go. Now."     "We have a little proposal for you, Eiji Shinjo," Vermilion said with a smile. "You ARE the leader of this group of rebelling fighters, after all. You give us what we want, the boy, and we'll give you back what you want, Ellis here. A simple trade. And I don't think I need to explain what will happen if you turn us down. Leon, if you would."     Leon smiled, happy to oblige to anything that would enrage Eiji. "Of course." He pressed the sword a bit tighter on Ellis's throat, and a small trickle of blood ran down it. The fighters gasped in dismay, and Eiji was fairly bristling.     Vermilion smirked, happy that this was going according to plan. "All you have to do is hand him over."     "If you think we're handing David over to you just like that, then you really as dense as you look," Nagisa replied, waving his gun at the group.     "And you shouldn't be so overconfident," Vermilion rasped in return. Ellis choked a bit from the tight headlock and whispered, "Don't...don't do it...not for me..." just before passing out cold from lack of air.     "NO! Ellis-chan!!"     David, meanwhile, was being awfully quiet. Images of Ellis, talking to him in the hotel room, and after they fought Atahua, and then the next morning, kept flashing through his mind.

_     "I care about you."     "What? You...you do?"

    "We want to protect you from the Soshiki, like we all said we would. And we wouldn't be doing this for you if we didn't care."

    "You did all this for me? Why?"     "I told you, friends care about each other, and they look out for each other."

_     For the first time in years, ever since he was forced to watch his parents suffering in the blaze of their burning house, before he locked all of his emotions away in a corner of his mind, David felt sorrow.     _She really is my friend._     With that in mind, he made his decision.     "Wait."     David stepped out from behind Sofia and Shizuku. "If I do surrender, first you've got to let Ellis go and then you've got to promise not to hurt her or any of my friends. Promise that, or I won't do it."     Vermilion smiled again. "Of course. You have my word."     "All right, then."     This raised a lot of protest from their group.     "David-chan, you can't!" Shizuku cried out.     "Don't trust these guys!"     "We'll figure out another way!"     "You don't have to sacrifice yourself for us!"     David looked back at them, his blue eyes seemingly a lot less colder than usual. "You guys have all done so much for me. It's time I did something for you in return." He turned back to Vermilion. "Now. Let her go."     Vermilion snapped his fingers, and Leon grabbed David tightly. Vermilion then shook his head and started to laugh. "Give the girl back? Not a chance. She'll make a fine sacrifice to our Overlord."     "You bastard!" Eiji yelled furiously. Enraged, he slid in on Rachael with a yell of "Shugekidan!!", driving his foot in at her shins and causing her to fall over with a cry, dropping Ellis in the process. Eiji quickly grabbed Ellis' limp body and backed up out of range. Rachael recovered quickly and swore, but Vermilion simply said. "Never mind. We'll take one of the other ones."     As Eiji dashed back to the group, they all crowded around as he laid Ellis' small frame on the ground. "Ellis-chan! Me o samashite, Ellis-chan!" Shizuku, though she was concerned, was baring her staff and debating whether or not to attack Leon on her own in order to free David.     As if he was able to read her thoughts, David managed to say, "Don't...Shizuku...I'll be okay...and tell Ellis...thanks...I...appreciated it."     "We still need one more blood sacrifice for the Overlord," Vermilion said as he scanned the rest of the group. Then he reached out, before anyone could react, grabbed Shizuku by the arm and pulled her away from them. "His guardian. You're a feisty bitch, trying to defy us when you knew all along who you were harbouring. You'll do."     "Yada!" Shizuku screamed and struggled. "Hanashite!!"     "What do we do with the rest of this group?" Leon asked.     "They'll just interfere if we leave them as they are," Vermilion simply replied. "Leon, you're coming with me back to headquarters. Zola. Atahua. Rachael. Destroy them."     As Zola, Atahua and Rachael got ready to attack, Vermilion gave the group one final, evil look.     "Remember the reckoning. Today we shall rise to rule this world." He laughed, as he and Leon teleported out, carrying David and Shizuku with them.

**********


	10. Chapter Nine: Defiance

**_In a world of darkness sanctioned by evil,  
where the only light of hope is a group of unlikely heroes,  
the legend's final chapter is about to end..._**

**- TOH SHIN DEN III: Walking Into Ruin -**

_a Battle Arena Toshinden 3 fanfiction by Athena Asamiya and Kasumi Todoh_

  
**CHAPTER NINE: Defiance**   
  
**Translations:**     _makenai mo_ - "I won't lose", one of Ellis' win quotes   
  
  


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    "This oughta be fun," Zola remarked, snapping her whip a couple times.     "You do realize you're outnumbered six to three, don't you?" Kayin replied snarkily, as the remaining warriors (him, Eiji, Sofia, Tracy, and Nagisa) took their respective fighting positions.     "Hah!" Rachael replied, tossing her red hair. "The Soshiki has made us five times as strong as you pathetic idiots. We could take you all on easy."     "You can go ahead and try something," Eiji said, unsheathing his sword. "We're ready for you, so come on!"     "Actually," Rachael answered, focusing on Tracy, who refused to meet her relentless gaze, "all I'm after is a fight with Tracy. She's the only one of you that I wanna personally see rid of."     "No way!" Nagisa shouted, stepping in front of Tracy and pointing his gun at Rachael. But Rachael just laughed at the sight.     "What'sa matter, sis? You've started using your friends to hide behind? Afraid of being beaten in front of them?" She stopped laughing suddenly and glared at them all. "Anyone who lets their emotions rule them is a fool."     Tracy stepped forward, violet eyes finally meeting her sister's, the same shade and shape. "We're...not fools." Turning to the rest of them, she glanced at the looks on their faces, then nodded and turned back to the three warriors she had fought with in the tournaments. "Let's at least make this fair to the rules of the Toshindaibukai. One-on-one only."     Atahua snickered. "That's not even. The only way the fight will continue in case of your death would be to have someone else take over."     She didn't hesitate. "That's fine by us."     "Well then, let's begin."     Tracy closed her eyes and smiled. "If you guys don't mind, it's come down to this for me, and I'm going to fight my sister on my own."     "I'll guard you, Tracy," Nagisa said, drawing his gun and dagger.     "Catwoman is mine," Sofia said. "How about it?" She turned to Zola. "One-on-one. Let us decide how 'equal' we really are, my dear."     Zola smiled, running her tongue along the edge of her bullwhip. "Just the way I like it."     Atahua faced Eiji and Kayin. "Well, I guess that leaves just you two and me. Shame the girlie isn't awake yet, I would have liked to have beaten her and be done with it." He closed his eyes and soon his body began to glow. Eiji and Kayin knew what he was trying to do.     Behind Atahua, Ellis was starting to show signs of regaining consciousness.     Atahua began the fight, spinning around in circle and bringing his arms down, screaming something in gibberish. Once again, ki in skull-shapes started exploding out of his small body and showering in all directions. The bombs of ki struck both Eiji and Kayin, harder than anything he'd ever felt, and both ended up on the ground, knocked a couple feet away by the power explosion.     "What the...what WAS that?" Eiji groaned, picking himself up off the ground.     "Nothing I've ever seen before," Kayin growled. "How could he do that...?"     "You see?" Atahua said triumphantly, walking towards them with blowdart tubes in hand. "You can't possibly stand a chance against me, or any of us. The powers of the Soshiki are stronger than anything on Earth!"     Suddenly, a new voice came from behind him.     "Has anyone ever told you that you guys like to gloat?"     Atahua turned around in surprise. A few feet behind him stood a slightly shaky Ellis, rubbing the back of her head.     "Ellis!"     "Ellis-chan!!"     "Well, well," Atahua said, smiling. "The gyspy girl decides to join the fun. `Bout time too. We've got a score to settle."     Ellis somersaulted through the air and landed so that she was facing him, Dirks out and ready. "Indeed we do. No offence, guys," she winked at Eiji and Kayin, "but I'd like to deal with this one on my own. If you don't mind," she added in mock-politeness.     Kayin started to say something, but Eiji cut him off. "Go right ahead."     "What?" Kayin protested. "Don't be a jackass, Eiji! We can't let her fight him alone!"     "Ellis-chan can handle herself," Eiji replied calmly, watching Ellis and Atahua taking their fighting poses. "She has before. This is her fight more than ours."     Meanwhile, Atahua was eyeing his female opponent with a smirk on his face. "Ready for round two?" he sarcastically asked.     Ellis glared back at him, a determined gleam in her sapphire eyes. "You bet I am."     With no further talk, Atahua started the fight off with his version of the Arc Slash, which Ellis blocked and countered with her Soar Wind, sending Atahua to the ground in a blaze of yellow and blue sparks. Enraged, he counterattacked furiously with a barrage of lightning-quick slashes and kicks, most of which were blocked, but one kick slipped through Ellis' defence and whacked her in the shin sharply. The gypsy stumbled, and before she could recover, another powerful kick got her square in the stomach. She doubled over with a loud gasp of air. Atahua smiled, muttering, "Not so fast now, are we...?" and moved in for the kill. Just when he reached his coughing target, Ellis raised her head, and this time, though weakly, it was her turn to smile. She flipped backwards, jumped up, and, shouting "Screw Dancing!" launched into a sparkling flip kick that caught Atahua under the chin and sent him flying high into the air. As he came back to the ground, he was hit in mid-air by her Lollipop. Atahua's body hit the ground, bounced twice, and came to rest several feet away. As Ellis slowly and cautiously approached her fallen oppenent, she received a jolt as she saw the dark-skinned boy recover quickly, then jump into the air and fire three blow darts at her. These darts were avoided by Ellis cartwheeling to one side, and then another. Finally, Ellis slid in at Atahua's knees, and managed to follow up with an upward kick that hit him in very sensitive area. Deciding it was time to finish this, she closed her eyes and began channeling her ki.     _Focus the ki. Put all the energy you can into it. If he can do it, I can. I CAN._     Her teeth grit in determination, Ellis spun around in a circle, Dirks held above her head, and brought her arms down, the way she had seen Atahua do it before. Only nothing happened.     _Uh-oh._     Atahua, seeing her failure to replicate his Soul Bomb, grinned nastily and retaliated with one of the most powerful of his moves -- which was practically identical to her own French Kiss move. Ellis was repeatedly knocked hard and slashed with her opponent's blowdart tubes, and landed sprawled on her back.     Kayin started forward, but Eiji stopped him and said, "We have to let her do it herself."     Standing over the young girl, Atahua said, "I'd like to be fair about this. Before I kill you, I'd like to give you an ultimatum."     "Oh yeah?" Ellis replied from the ground, "And what's that?"     He tossed his head, as if he'd already won. "You're a very good fighter. One of the best I've seen. You'd make a fine warrior for the Soshiki. These weren't my orders, but if you join us, I'll spare your life."     Ellis didn't say anything. Instead she rolled out from under him and got up slowly. She closed her eyes again.     _I've got to focus my ki right this time. Concentrate, Ellis._     Suddenly, she began to glow, lightly at first, but then stronger. For several minutes she stood like this, waves of different, bright pink ki radiating from her small frame. Then, feeling her power reach its peak, her eyes flew open. Ellis spun around in a circle and thrust her arms downwards. About a dozen pink hearts exploded out of her body, raining down on a surprised Atahua. Each one found its mark, striking a dozen times and sending her opponent flying through the air to slam against a nearby tree before falling limply to the ground.     Walking over to where the still, lifeless body of her opponent lay, she said, "Consider that my answer." Ellis turned back to her friends with a triumphant grin.     "Makenai mou! I did it! Eiji-kun! Kayin! Did you see that?"

****************

    Meanwhile, Sofia was having problems of her own -- and that was quickly finding out just how equal Zola was to her. Thunder Ring cancelled out Flash Ring. Golden Ballerina knocked out Aurora Revolution. Neither one could land a good, solid hit; they were both too skilled to allow it from either side.     "Enough of this!" Sofia called out finally in frustration, snapping her whip out in front of her a couple times to release some of the tension. "Fight seriously, or we won't fight at all!"     Zola just laughed in replied. "Don't you know that cats like to play with their catch? However, I can see you're getting sick of my cat-and-mouse games, and quite frankly, so am I. Let's end this little game now!" With that, she jumped up and sent another Flash Ring shooting down at Sofia. Sofia blocked this, the energy dissapating against her outstretched whip, but in doing so she wasn't able to block the Golden Ballerina which Zola hit her in the back with on her way down from the air. Sofia landed on her stomach, and immidiately jumped back to her feet and resumed her fighting stance. _Damn it...I cannot make any mistakes now--_     "Oshiokidai yo!!" Zola snapped her whip several times in a powerful, star-shaped arc. This too was blocked by Sofia, but the barbs stung her gloved hands. However, as the move finished, Zola let her guard down for just a second. Sofia took advantage of that second and nailed her with a slash to the stomach followed by a kick in the head. Zola went crashing to the ground but was almost instantly on her feet again, this time clutching her side and slightly out of breath. Sofia was also breathing hard, the number of hits she had taken was becoming evident. Zola saw her weakness and decided to capitalize on it.     "Wimped out already?" she snickered at Sofia. Then, without waiting for an answer, she started moving towards her, yellow ki sparkling off her body. Suddenly she launched into a super version of her Golden Ballerina, circling Sofia at least five times with very hard whip slashes, sending her flying backwards to the ground.     "You see, dearie?" Zola replied, walking towards where Sofia lay. "We Soshiki warriors can study and mimic any attack. And I've got your moves basically memorized."     Sofia got up again, slowly this time.     "All right then," she spat, "Memorize THIS!! _Call Me Queen!!!_"     She spun through the air, trailing the same sparkling ki. She came right at Zola, landing on top of her and knocking her down. Then, before Zola could do anything, Sofia landed, dropped her whip, grabbed a handful of the collar of Zola's outfit, lifted her off the ground, and proceeded to slap her a half a dozen times across the face. She then finished off by kicking her in the stomach, and letting her fall to the ground again.     As Zola was getting up, rubbing her bruised face, she saw Sofia leap high into the air and seemingly disappear. Zola immediately brought her guard up, but Sofia was nowhere to be seen. By the time it occurred to her to look behind her, it was too late.     "SALAMANDER!!"     With that word, Sofia launched into her most powerful attack, a hyper-powered Rattlesnake that exploded with Thunder Rings and lightning energy. The combination attack hit Zola in the back, slashing and striking her body several times, becoming more painful with each blow. By the time it was all over, only one fighter stood still alive and moving. Sofia shook her finger and tsk-tsked her fallen oppenent, then raised a hand to her lips and started laughing mockingly.     "_Hohohohohoho~!_"

****************

    Tracy leapt back to avoid another Atomic Blow that Rachael launched at her, and grimaced. During the entire fight so far, all she had been doing was blocking and dodging. It was annoying Rachael as well. No matter what she did or how much she taunted Tracy, her sister refused to fight back. With Ellis' and Sofia's fights now over, the remainder of the group were also intensely watching the two women fight.     "Why doesn't she fight back?" Ellis asked Eiji as they watched their friend take a pounding. Eiji didn't say anything. He stood there, watching them, and not giving any indication that he had even heard Ellis' question. Ellis fell quiet, realizing what Eiji was seeing in this battle. _Sibling against sibling...sister against sister, brother against brother--_     "Dammit, Rachael!" Tracy called out angrily. "Can't we just STOP THIS? I don't wanna fight you and you know it! If you're that pissed at me, let's just talk it out or something!"     "There's nothing to talk about, Tracy," Rachael replied in a deep tone, clutching her tonfa tightly. "You ruined my life. That's all there is to it. And, in case you haven't noticed, YOU may not want to fight me, but I have no problem fighting you. So you don't have a choice: Fight me or else you're gonna die!"     Tracy was silent, then looked away, refusing to meet her twin's furious gaze. "I won't," she whispered, hanging her head. "You and I both know that I never did anything to hurt you."     "You're not fooling me with that again. It's your fault I got dumped in the first place. If you weren't always so much better than me, things could've been different!"     "Your getting dumped had nothing to do with me! I didn't do it! I didn't decide it!"     "SHUT UP!!!" With that, Rachael launched a swift knee smash at Tracy, only to have it blocked. Rachael smiled suddenly, as though something had just dawned on her. "I know why you won't fight. You're afraid that if you do, I'll kick your ass. You don't want to get hurt by me, right?" Tracy didn't answer. "Answer me." Still nothing.     "ANSWER ME!!" Furious at her twin sister's lack of response, Rachael executed her version of Tracy's Electro Spartan, spinning upwards with her arms straight out at her sides, tonfas spinning and trailing orange flame. She hit Tracy in the face, sending the policewoman spiralling to the ground. Tracy rolled over and spat out a little blood, then looked up at her sister. Finally, she answered, "I don't care if I get hurt. I just don't want you to get hurt by me. That's why I won't fight you. I don't want you to die, Rachael. And that's what's gonna happen if you stay with the Soshiki."     "Hmph. Still the goody-goody, huh, Trae?" Rachael tossed her head. "Well, what do YOU know? We're going to win over this world. And you've always led the sheltered life, with all your friends and family to care about you. You've got a nice little life. I hear you're even a policewoman on the NYPD, huh?"     There was not much Tracy could do except nod her head.     "See? You don't know what it's like to have to struggle every moment of your life," Rachael went on, tears starting to form in her angry green eyes. "I bet you've never suffered like I have. I've been all alone all my life, with absolutely no one to love me. No one ever cared about me! And no one still does! That's why I'm stuck with them! This gives my life some meaning!!" She thrust one arm out behind her. "This is all I have!!"     "That's not true! They're just using all of you! Look what happened to your friends!" Tracy motioned to Atahua and Zola's lifeless bodies. "And I care about you, Rachael. Why else would I not fight back?" Tracy was standing up now, and Rachael regarded her suspiciously.     "I don't believe you. Why should I?"     "You're my twin sister, dammit. I said I wouldn't fight you because I didn't want to hurt you. But I wouldn't say that if I didn't care about you."     "You're just saying that so I'll spare your pathetic life. Why should you be different from all the others? Well, it ain't gonna work, sis." She suddenly started channelling her ki, much the way Atahua and the others had done, absorbing it into her double-tonfa rods.     "No, Rachael!" Tracy cried out. "Wait!!"     Suddenly Rachael's eyes opened. She spun both her flaming tonfas around in circular motions and pointed them at Tracy. Several diamond-shaped blasts of fiery energy came exploding out of the tonfas, aimed straight at Tracy's heart. Tracy tried to block them, but the force of Rachael's Soul Bomb was still enough to knock her to the ground again.     Standing over Tracy, Rachael raised her tonfas, prepared to strike the final blow. "See you there, Trae," she muttered fiercely.     But Tracy suddenly sprang to life. She shouted "Pale Slider!!" and struck Rachael twice with a giant double flip kick, surrounded by blue and yellow sparks, sending her flying backwards. Now it was Rachael's turn to be lying on the ground, with Tracy approaching her.     "Now," the policewoman said, "you're gonna listen to reason, even if I have to-"     She stopped short when she noticed the look on Rachael's face. All the colour had drained out of it, and the look in her cold green eyes was one of shock, and even almost fear. But why would Rachael suddenly be afraid of her? A moment ago she was trying to kill her. It couldn't be the Pale Slider she just did...she hadn't even hit her that hard. _What the hell--_     The 'look-behind-you' feeling kicked in at about the same time Tracy realized that Rachael wasn't staring at her but rather over Tracy's shoulder, at something - or someone - behind her. She quickly spun around. There, standing only a couple feet away, was a tall, very muscular man with blond hair covered by a black bandana. He was wearing a small black top which barely covered his upper body at all, and baggy red pants accented by a pair of huge belts. Golden bands surrounded both of his upper arms, which were folded in obvious displeasure. There was a grave expression on the man's face, and his green eyes burning.     "Who the hell are YOU??" Tracy growled, readying her tonfas in case she had to fight him as well.     But it wasn't the man himself who answered her; it was Rachael. "Abel-sama..." she barely whispered.     "Abel?" Tracy murmured, taking a cautious step back -- there was something about this guy that just wasn't right. The other fighters all had their weapons ready and were waiting nearby. Eiji was the next one to speak out.     "Who are you and what are you here for?" he yelled at the massive man, levelling his sword. "You'd better tell us now. None of us are in very patient moods."     Abel simply turned and look over his shoulder, then smirked. "Well, well. If it isn't our dear Toshin warriors. I'll be dealing with you in a minute." He turned back to his underling, approaching her and glaring down at her crouched form, short red hair askew. "You have failed me, Rachael. You didn't get rid of the Toshin fighters."     "Let me explain--" she began meekly.     "What are you talking about?" Tracy shouted, even though she was being ignored by both of them. "What's going on here?"     "I'm tired of your excuses," Abel went on to his henchwoman. "You're a failure, Rachael. You and Zola and Atahua. Vermilion and Leon did a better job than you." He snorted. "It's a pity they're both going to die anyway. They were...useful. As you all were once, but of course, you're also all disposable."     Rachael's face seemed to go even paler than what it had a minute ago. "What...what--are you saying, A-Abel-sama? You're going to kill--?"     "Why not? I have the boy. They're no longer useful. And neither are you, Rachael. You are no longer worthy of the Toshin's blood."     Making a noise that sounded like a half-hearted squeak, Rachael attempted to stumble away from Abel and begged, "Please, Abel-sama. Just give me one more chance, that's all I ask..."     Abel closed his eyes and shook his head. "You three had your chance and more, and you allowed these pathetic fighters to make fools of you. Now you must face the consequences. SHI NE!!"     Abel raised his right arm, and his closed fist began glowing with powerful blue ki. Suddenly, he started firing balls of pure ki energy at Rachael, and raised both arms to release one giant ball that seemed to engulf him. By some invisible force, Rachael's beaten body was elevated from the ground and flung right into the mass of energy.     "RACHAEL!!!!!" Tracy screamed, attempting to get to her sister, but was held back by Nagisa. She struggled, screaming at Abel. "NO!!! Stop it, you bastard, STOP!!!!"     "Tracy!" she could hear her sister yell in return from the middle of the hellish energy inferno. "I didn't mean for this to happen!! I'm--"     "Huh." Abel dropped his arms, and the blast dissapated. "You're pathetic, Rachael. And a fool." Rachael's battered body fell back to the ground, and Tracy dashed over to her.     "Rachael! Wake up, dammit, come on! Come on!" Tracy continuously shook her sister, but it was no use. It was too late; her twin sister didn't wake up.     "_Shit..._" whispered Tracy, closing her eyes and feeling her body shake, tears streaming down her face. "God...damn...you FUCKING BASTARD!! You killed my sister!!!" Enraged, Tracy dropped Rachael's body and dashed at Abel, tonfas flaming. Abel simply smiled and put up a barrier around himself that Tracy could not penetrate. It was electrocuting her in the process, the pain excruciable, but Tracy's angry yells got louder as she kept pressing against the force field, trying to break through. The smile slowly disappeared from Abel's face, as he flung one hand out towards her. Tracy went flying backwards and hit the ground near her friends.     "Tracy!" Nagisa ran towards her, followed by the others. "You okay? Tracy?"     Bruised with her face covered in sweat and tears, Tracy turned vengeful eyes on Abel. "Bastard...you BASTARD..."     "Hm. You showed more than I expected from only one of you. Emotions are powerful things when used correctly, it would seem." Abel looked amused. "You've all grown much stronger since you destroyed the Himitsu Kessha. And I should thank you for that."     "Why thank us?" Kayin snapped. "Didn't think you guys would be that happy about it."     "Oh, on the contrary. We were secretly at war with the Himitsu Kessha, or should I say the Gerard Foundation...they were our enemies for a very long time. Our top commander and spy, Vermilion, joined them as a ruse to destroy them..." Abel's face darkened. "Until they held that tournament and invited all of you. They should have known a tournamant would be their demise. There were bound to be fighters like you, and they were warned, but did not listen. They were all fools, Master and her Shitennou, the lot of them. Just fools."     "Just what do we have to do with this?" called out Sofia. Abel smiled slyly.     "It's quite simple, really. You're threatening our plans. Therefore we want you dead. And make no mistakes, you all WILL die. Today is the reckoning...soon, actually."     "We won't let it happen!" Eiji yelled, preparing to take Abel down on the spot.     Abel smirked. "You can't stop it. None of you have the power. Not even the two angels can stop us -- I'm sure they'll try though. That will be played right into our hands."     "Not my niisan..." whispered Eiji, dropping his sword slightly. "There's no way... You can't!!"     "Remember," Abel said warningly, "the reckoning will come soon. Soon will be our Overlord's ascension to this world and all with good in their hearts will die before him!"     With these last words, Abel's form blurred, faded, then disappeared. He was gone, but the threat was far from over...

**********


	11. Chapter Ten: Awakening

**_In a world of darkness sanctioned by evil,  
where the only light of hope is a group of unlikely heroes,  
the legend's final chapter is about to end..._**

**- TOH SHIN DEN III: Walking Into Ruin -**

_a Battle Arena Toshinden 3 fanfiction by Athena Asamiya and Kasumi Todoh_

  
**CHAPTER TEN: Awakening**   
  
**Translations:**     _yurusan_ - unforgivable     _mochiron_ - of course     _wakatteru yo_ - understood     _e?!_ - what?!     _minna_ - everyone     _sayonara_ - good-bye     _chikusho_ - dammit     _ara_ - oh     _byakko_ - white tiger     _chigau yo!_ - you're wrong!     _iie_ - no     _arigatou_ - thank you     _iya_ - no [used more like "NO!!!", especially in this situation ^_~]   
  
  


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    "That's it then?" Kayin murmured in disbelief. "They've won?"     Nagisa shook his head sadly. "We can't find the place now that Shizuku's gone..."     "She wrote down instructions for me earlier," Sofia interjected. "I have them right here, although..."     "There's no reason to go? What's the point? We're dead already?" Tracy finished desperately, still crouched on the ground and obviously hurting from her sister's death.     "No."     The remander of the group (Kayin, Sofia, Ellis, Nagisa, and Tracy) turned to Eiji Shinjo with surprised looks. He was clenching one hand into a fist, so hard it was shaking. "Yurusan...yurusan, I won't let them." He looked up, red eyes blazing with meaning. "We're going on with the plan. We can't leave it like this. Not when David, Shizuku-san...our families, friends, and everyone in this world is threatened."     "But do you honestly believe we CAN??" Tracy yelled, getting to her feet. "They've got the kid. They can perform that ceremony anytime now!"     "All the more reason to leave right now." Eiji looked over at his team. "I don't know about the rest of you, but I think no matter what, we have to go on and at least try."     They all exchanged glances, not knowing what to say or do. There was a lengthy period of silence before Ellis stepped forward bravely, gripping her Dirks.     "David got captured for my sake. I'm going to stop them, no matter what it takes."     Sofia nodded. "She has the right idea. I will go too."     "Same here." Kayin joined his friends with Eiji. "No sense letting a perfectly good world go to waste, eh?"     "Right," Nagisa agreed. "We have to save David and Shizuku." He looked at Tracy. "What about you?"     Tracy said nothing, then turned her head and whispered, "I don't want to fight anymore..."     "But you know how much is at stake here. Millions could die if we don't stop them now." Nagisa put a hand on her shoulder. "Your sister would have wanted you to do this. Come with us."     Tracy just stared at her partner for a second, then pushed away from the group. Everyone was startled, but Tracy simply looked back at them, wiped the remaining tears from her eyes, and said, "All right then, I'm going. But only `cause none of you'd survive without me there to save your asses."     "That's the spirit, Tracy-san," Eiji laughed. "Alright everybody, let's go kick some Soshiki ass." As the team charged off to get their vehicles, a constant thought lingered at the back of Eiji's mind.     _This could be our last battle..._

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    "Ne..." the young woman whispered, "this means we will go too, I suppose?"     Her companion nodded. "Mochiron. They've found the heart of their destiny. Now it's our turn to help them achieve it."     "Wakatteru yo." She sighed. "This will spell the end for one side, or the other." She looked outwards towards the sun.     "For the legend has almost come to its conclusion..."

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    "Which road do we take?" Eiji yelled back behinds him at Sofia, who was sitting next to Tracy in her Jeep as they all sped towards the Soshiki headquarters in their respective vehicles (Eiji and Ellis on Eiji's motorcycle, Kayin on his, and Tracy, Sofia and Nagisa in Tracy's Jeep). Sofia consulted the directions that Shizuku had written out for her the previous night and called back, "The left one, Eiji! We're going to have to hurry, they know we're coming!"     "How do you know that, Sofi?" shouted Ellis in return, holding onto Eiji around the waist to keep from falling off.     Tracy, at the wheel, glanced in the rearview mirror and decided to reply for Sofia. "Because they're RIGHT BEHIND US!!"     "E?!" Eiji swerved around a narrow corner before he turned around and caught sight of several dark-clothed figures on motorcycles coming up behind them. They were growing in numbers rapidly and it looked like they were armed.     "Oh, shit!!" Kayin yelled. "They outnumber us!"     Nagisa shifted forwards and called to them one command. "FASTER!!"     "You got it!" Tracy grit her teeth and put on the gas, causing the Jeep to abruptly gain speed and the inhabitants of the car to pitch forwards in their seats. Ahead of them, both Kayin and Eiji revved their motorcycles' engines and sped up, with Ellis behind Eiji yelling, "Eiji-kun, slow down!!"     It didn't help. It had turned into a race to get to the headquarters.     The henchmen got the jump on them, speeding up and driving along beside the car, slashing out at its passengers with razor-sharp daggers. Nagisa growled, pulled out his switchblade and slashed one across the face, then hit another that was trying to nail Tracy, causing her to nearly swerve off the narrow road. Sofia grabbed her whip and gave two more henchmen-on-wheels a few good cracks to the side of the head, causing them to fall off their bikes and make a nice splatter on the road. Falling off while going at around 180+ miles per hour was not a pretty sight in any event.     "Damn!" Eiji yelped, yanking his sword out of its sheath with one hand while trying to steer with the other, with Ellis behind him whacking off pursuer after pursuer with her double-edged Dirks. Kayin was having similar problems attempting to fight and drive at the same time, but they all knew what would happen if they lost this dangerous road battle.     "Eiji, there it is!" Sofia cried out between whippings.     "Huh?" Eiji turned his attention forwards while Ellis battled off confronting enemies. Directly ahead of them, looming on the horizon, was a tall, tower-like complex, shining almost a strange golden colour. It looked nearly identical to the Himitsu Kessha headquarters, but there was no doubt that this was the place they were looking for.     "Yeah..." He nodded in satisfaction. "That's it! Everyone, MOVE IT!!"     "Right!" Tracy jammed her foot down hard on the gas petal, and the Jeep moved even faster than before. Eiji, Ellis and Kayin finished beating off their attackers and shot ahead of the rest of them; even so, it was a bit of a while before they managed to lose the Soshiki henchmen and actually reach the headquarters' front gate. Sure enough, carved on a brass-coloured plate next to the opening double doors was written "Soshiki", in Japanese kanji characters. Nothing else was written.     "So this's it, eh?" Kayin proclaimed, tilting his head upwards to look at the massive building as the rest dismounted their vehicles and checked for serious wounds. "They sure made this thing pretty damn tall."     Sofia shook her head. "There is no time for sightseeing. We have to get inside and find David and Shizuku now, before it is too late."     "Right," Nagisa added, loading more bullets into his massive gun. "The reckoning should be starting soon, and we have to stop them."     Eiji nodded, agreeing with them. "Minna...no, never mind. We should get inside."     "Like the damn thing's gonna be wide open," muttered Tracy. To her and everyone else's surprise, it was. Almost too suspiciously.     Weapons out and ready, the fighters took on defensive positions as they guarded each other's backs, trying to creep down the seemingly empty hallway as quietly as they could. It was not well lit, only a few dimmed lights every now and then, and the corridor walls seemed to be made of some kind of metal, giving an oddly futuristic look. There was a low humming noise, almost like a machine or power generator, and that was the only sound that could be heard, other than the group's quiet footsteps and hushed breathing. Since the lighting was bad, they all had a hard enough time navigating down the snaking hall without trying to keep from tripping each other in the process.     "Where is everyone?" Ellis whispered. "At the ceremony? Don't say it's begun already!"     "We can pray it hasn't, lass," Kayin answered back, "because if that's right, then there'll be no hope in getting David back safely."     "Oh...I hope he's okay. Shizuku too."     Suddenly, then came to a split in the darkened corridor, the path breaking off into many different directions. Eiji took a few tense steps forward, trying to judge what would be best to find the ceremony room.     "Don't ya all think it's a bit weird that they haven't attacked us again?" Tracy hissed at the group. "I mean, come on, this is way strange. We should've been confronted by now."     "I know...it's odd," Nagisa commented in agreement. "There should be more resistance, since we're the invading enemies and all. Not even any surveillance cameras."     Ellis shook her head. "They may all be at the ceremony. More reason to keep going. Eiji-kun, which hallway do we take?" Noticing Eiji's lack of response, and seeing that he hadn't even turned around to acknowledge her question, she confusedly asked, "Eiji-kun, what's wrong?"     Eiji was silent for another moment, before addressing the whole group in general with his response.     "We'll split up."     "What?!?" The majority of them were not pleased with their team leader's answer, but remembered to keep their voices down at the last minute. Tracy angrily snapped back, "That'll be our death, Shinjo! They'll pick us off one by one if we split up!"     "She's right," Kayin agreed with a nod. "Eiji, what are you thinking? It'd makes it easier for them to get us."     "No." Eiji's answer was abrupt. "I know what I'm doing. Tracy, Iwashiro-san, Sofia, take the hall to the far right. Kayin-chan, take Ellis-chan and go to the one next to it. We're sure to find the right room if we do that."     "But, Eiji..." Sofia started. She stopped herself there. "All right. I trust your judgment. Come on then, everyone, let us go."     Reluctantly, they all parted in the aforementioned directions down the hallways. Ellis paused for a moment, before saying, "Go ahead of me, Kayin, I'll be with you in a second." Kayin stared at her for a second, then nodded and headed off down the dim corridor. Ellis stayed behind and regarded Eiji. "Eiji-kun, you know this isn't going to work. What's the matter? Why are you going by yourself?" When there was no answer, Ellis stepped up to him and yelled, "Answer me, Eiji! What's going on??"     Eiji could only turn away. "I can stop this..."     "No, you can't!! Don't you see? It will NEVER stop, Eiji-kun!! We can't beat them! God...why did we have to get caught up in this...this awful..." Ellis stopped, her voice only able to reach a whisper.     "None of us...none of us asked to be caught up in this...this hell...I just--I just want to go home."     She was then unable to say anything else as Eiji embraced her tightly, and whispered to her.     "I can feel his ki. It's way too strong. He won't find you if you go down the other hallways, and will attack me because I'm by myself. He's in the direction I'm going." Eiji's eyes met Ellis'. "I know what I'm doing, Ellis-chan. I don't want any more people to die, especially not my own friends and allies. We can beat them...we just have to keep faith in ourselves."     "Eiji-kun..." Ellis was stunned, but only momentarily before she threw her arms around Eiji, a tear rolling down her face. "Eiji-kun, I--I..."     "I know, Ellis-chan," Eiji whispered, "It's alright. I know."     Letting go of Eiji, she wiped the tear away with the back of her hand. "When I ran into you at the airport three years ago, I had no idea that you were going to be...well, you." Even though she smiled, another tear ran down her cheek. "Thanks for running into me."     Eiji looked downwards and smiled. "No problem."     She nodded hopefully. "So don't worry, Eiji-kun. We can do this, I know we can. Because you made me that promise three years ago that you would always protect me, so I'm not losing you now. I'll come back to you...as long as you come back to me. Promise?" She held out her hand.     Eiji smiled back in return and took it, just as they had the first time they made peace with each other. "Promise."     Ellis nodded, happy with the exchange, and started off down the hallway after Kayin, but then suddenly came to a halt and turned around.     "Eiji-kun..." she began quietly. "I'm really sorry...for beating you up like that at the first tournament."     She continued her pace down the corridor, the pink ribbon on her costume dancing as if saying good-bye. Eiji watched after her sadly. He knew what was coming. He had the feeling, "fighter's instinct", as he himself had called it so many years ago, that he wasn't going to survive this battle.     "Sayonara, Ellis-chan."     Eiji picked up his pace to a slow jog, as he started off towards the ceremony room.     _Niisan, I know you're here. Where are you?_

****************

    "They're here."     The announcement, issued by Abel in his usual meeting room, came as no surprise to Vermilion and Leon, who were bowed before him. Abel paced out of his chair and looked pleased. "They've split up too. How convenient for us. Eiji Shinjo and his band of rebels think they can outsmart us, but the Soshiki is always one step ahead of them. He'll learn that soon enough." With a satisfied smile, he turned to his second and third-in-command.     "You may destroy them. But leave Eiji Shinjo for me."     Leon raised his head, a shocked and angry look crossing his young face. "But...no! I wish to kill him! Let me!" He stood up angrily, challenging his boss's decision.     "Leon!" hissed Vermilion. "Just be silent before-"     Abel sighed. "Leon, I've had about enough of your fool pride and desire for revenge. It ends now." With that, Abel made a single motion with his hand, and a ring around Leon formed, then started to glow bright blue. Leon's face took on a frightened look, and he only had time to scream, before the circle of ki-power rose up around him and engulfed him in a column of fiery blue energy. The screaming stopped.     "Hm." Abel dropped his hand. The circle disappeared, and Leon was gone. "Useless. At least they're disposable."     Vermilion turned his head to one side, refusing to meet Abel's cold green gaze, and asked, "And the others?"     "Dead."     "I thought as much."     Abel snickered. "It's all part of the plan, Vermilion. They're no longer needed." His focus rested on Vermilion. "But then again, neither are you."     Vermilion stood up, but instead of looking surprised or shocked like Rachael and Leon had, he looked unconcerned. "So we were a part of your plan all along. To use us -- use me for your own gain."     Abel smiled. "Brilliant. You always were one of my smartest henchmen. But then, I suppose you were planning to betray me, eventually."     A smirk creased Vermilion's marked face. "Of course."     "How amusing. But now that I have the boy and the ceremony can begin anytime, it looks like I'm the one who will have won this battle. There can only be room for one warrior at the side of our Overlord. And you, Vermilion, were only needed until you stopped being useful. And now that the sacrificial ceremony can commence, I have no need of anyone else in my Soshiki. But it would be a shame to kill you. I can suffer your treachery."     Vermilion narrowed his eyes at this and almost smiled, but saw Abel's hand outstretched, palm facing him.     "But there's one thing you forgot, Vermilion..."     As quick as Vermilion was with raising both his shotgun and pistol, Abel was faster. An invisible force slammed into him, sending his body flying backwards across the room and smashing into the wall at the other side. Abel then squeezed his hand almost shut, like a choking motion, telekinetically throttling his commander. Still holding his grip, Abel walked to Vermilion's gasping body and stood over him, smiling calmly.     "Treachery does not allow mistakes."     Vermilion choked and tried to speak again. He succeeded. _"damn you..."_ Using the last of his strength, Vermilion raised his shotgun and fired at Abel. Though the bullet tried to penetrate the force field Abel brought up around him, it dropped uselessly to the ground, having not made its mark. Vermilion's body went limp, and the shotgun fell to the floor with a clatter. Abel let go of his telekinetic grasp and watched this without any emotion.     "After all," he murmured, "Absolute power corrupts. Betrayal is...sometimes necessary."     Suddenly, another voice broke through the silence, resonating throughout the dark room.     **"Was that really a good idea, Abel?"**     Abel was not surprised in the least, closing his eyes and smiling. "Veil. You know it was."     **"You could have left him to destroy the Toshin warriors."**     "I think I'll leave that up to you."     **"Fine. But remember our agreement. Only then will we have enough power to awaken our Overlord."**     "Of course. I'll keep my word as long as you do."     But then, when Abel turned back around, he got quite a shock.     Vermilion's body was gone.

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    Eiji Shinjo was frustrated.     He had been heading down the hallway for quite a while now, taking whatever turn he felt was the right one, but was starting to think he had made a mistake. A really BIG mistake.     "Chikusho," he growled out loud. "How am I supposed to find this place?"     _And where is my niisan?_     Eiji halted for a moment to catch his breath, and leaned against one wall, sighing and fiddling with his sword-hilt, something he did when he was nervous or anxious.     _Dammit, I feel trapped...knowing you can only go forward, and if you try to go back, you'll get caught in between and then there's no hope of saving you._     "You're still struggling against your fate, Eiji Shinjo."     Eiji whirled on his heel to see that a tall, lithe figure was now blocking his way. A now-familiar woman, dressed in maroon and black with purple hair and red eyes. Wielding her halberd blade with confidence, Cupido stepped towards him, red heels tapping on the hard metal floor.     "You've found the heart of your destiny. But what are you going to do now?"     "Cupido..." Eiji was surprised for a minute, then took a breath and exhaled sharply, giving her one of his best serious (and slightly annoyed) looks. "Don't play games with me, Cupido. I'm not in the mood."     She smiled tauntingly. "So it would seem. The world is about to end." She got right in his face, keeping her voice and emotion at the same level. "But what makes you think that you have to do this alone?"     Eiji's gaze went to the floor quickly like a child being scolded, almost ashamed. "Because...I don't want the others to die. If I try my hardest, I can do it alone, and no one else will get hurt."     "Except you."     "I don't care what happens to me. If I lose my life but save everyone, I'll be glad."     Cupido regarded him for a moment, and was seemingly pleased at what she saw. "My, you have learned something over the years."     "Never mind that right now. Where's my niisan? I know he's here."     Cupido looked away hesitantly. Eiji took a step closer to her, almost threateningly. "Don't lie to me, Cupido. So tell me the truth -- where's my niisan?"     "He's here."     "I figured as much. Where? I have to see him." Eiji's face took on a slightly suspicious look. "Are -- you and him..."      She practically spat the words, even though a bit of colour rose to her cheeks. "We have no time for THAT. And you'd best not ask, Byakko."     "Why did you just call me that?"     "Ara, Byakko?" She seemed amused that he didn't know. "That's the name that you're written as in the legend, because of your beloved sword, no doubt, and the god that guards you. You're all referred to differently by my master, Fate...the Byakko, the Storm, the Slashing Whip, the Wind Dancer and all."     "I'm in a legend? All of us?"     "Of course. It's the Toshinden, the Legend of the Fighting God. Written by fate and controlled by destiny." Her red lips turned upwards in a small smile. "Your destiny, of course."     Eiji stared for a minute, then shook his head as if to clear it. "Never mind this. I need to speak to my brother. If you don't want to see things get ugly, Cupido, tell me where he is."     "I can't tell you that." Cupido turned her back to him and took a few steps. "He's watching, of course. In the end, that's all we can do -- watch."     Eiji cocked an eyebrow, curious. "What do you mean by that?"     "Watching as you're created and destroyed, while your world crumbles into ashes and all your faith and beliefs fade into nothing..." She sighed sadly. "Even my brother and I...we couldn't change anything. Not even anything between us."     "You...have a brother?"     "I did. Once. My twin brother." She pursed her lips for a moment before continuing. "But you'll find that when the time comes, you can only watch."     Eiji's eyes widened, but he shook his head again defiantly. "Chigau yo! It's not like that! And it won't be like that, ever!" His voice dropped. "I won't let it."     "Then are you willing to make the difference that decides between life or death?" Her glowing red eyes focused on him once again, burning into his soul. "It's up to you, Byakko."     For a moment, looking at Cupido like that in pure silence, Eiji could see how much she resembled his brother. And again, he was reminded of the time two years ago, that had started all this: the first Toshindaibukai tournament he had attended. That was the first time he had met Cupido, the woman who stood in front of him now. Eiji sighed and closed his eyes.     "So then, Byakko, what is your choice?" Her voice broke through his thoughts. "Even I couldn't fortell what path you would take."     Eiji turned away from her. "Cupido, I have to do this." He opened his eyes and looked over his shoulder at her. "If I can make the difference between the saving or destruction of this world, then what kind of man would I be to refuse that responsibility?"     Cupido nodded, satisfied with his answer. "Byakko, iie -- Eiji Shinjo, you have grown since I first met you. It has taken you some time, but I think you now finally understand your duty and your destiny." She smiled, and it wasn't a cold fake one like all the other times, but a warm human one. "Your brother will be pleased."     The adventurer grinned. "Tell me where to go."     "Down that corridor. Turn to the left, and then left again, and you'll go around a corner and come to a pair of stone doors. Inside you'll find your fate."     Eiji turned in the pointed direction and looked over his shoulder at Cupido. "Arigato, Cupido-san. For everything you've done for us." He smiled sadly. "Thank my niisan for me too...in case, well, you know...I don't see him again."     She bowed her head in final respect. "I understand. Fare thee well, and may Luck be with you, Eiji Shinjo."     With one last glance at Cupido, Eiji headed off to crash the ceremony. However, he didn't see Cupido continue to watch him, and whisper something to the air, a sad note in her voice.     "I know what you'll do for him...you'll take care of him when we couldn't, treat him like your own, give him the love he would never have had. For what you will do, I thank you, Eiji Shinjo." Cupido smiled, red eyes glistening with something that had never been there before -- tears.     "Thank you." 

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    Eiji was getting more annoyed by the minute. He had turned left, but then took a wrong turn in his haste and had to backtrack, only to not see a single set of doors.     _Where is that damn ceremony room? Guess I can only hope that the others have found it before I did. Otherwise..._     He turned the corner to the left as Cupido had said, and saw that straight down the hall in front of him loomed a large set of stone doors, ominously.     _There's the doors. That's the ceremony room alright._ Eiji walked up to the door and put a gloved hand on it, then held his ear to it and listened hard. The result was that he could hear some strange, loud noises coming from inside.     _Damn, it's a fight. They did make it. And there's no way this door's gonna be unlocked. I can't cut it down either._     Trying to figure out how he was going to get in, Eiji pushed on the door experimentally. It easily swung open.     _Well, what'd ya know._     Feeling quite proud of himself, he approached the large, dark room with caution, shifting his view from one direction to another, holding his katana out in defense. The room was completely circular, with high walls, and the only light in the darkness was from some flaming torches lit around a large, ceremonial-type platform. The roof was wide open above it, but the opening yawned as dark as a pitch-black night.     Chained to the middle of the platform, unconcious and beaten, was David.     "David!" Eiji yelled out in concern, but all of a sudden he noticed something.     Something that he hadn't seen before.     On the stone walls of the large ceremony room, all around him, there were figures chained to them.     Blood sacrifices. His friends.     All of them, Kayin, Sofia, Ellis, Tracy, Nagisa, and Shizuku, all bruised and scratched with their costumes tattered and blood-stained, heads limply hanging and eyes closed, none of them making a single sound to breach the heavy silence, to let Eiji know they were alive.     Dead?     Eiji's breath caught in his throat. "Minna..."     His eyes widened with fear and grief.     "IYAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!"     And watching all of this was Abel. Laughing.     He had won.

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	12. Chapter Eleven: Ruin

**_In a world of darkness sanctioned by evil,  
where the only light of hope is a group of unlikely heroes,  
the legend's final chapter is about to end..._**

**- TOH SHIN DEN III: Walking Into Ruin -**

_a Battle Arena Toshinden 3 fanfiction by Athena Asamiya and Kasumi Todoh_

  
**CHAPTER ELEVEN: Ruin**   
  
**Translations:**     _son'na_ - this can't be     _minna_ - everyone     _saa_ - now     _gomen_ - I'm sorry     _yada_ - [yet another version of] no     _baka_ - fool     _shinda_ - he's dead     _Kesshoku no Tenshi_ - Sho's side name; literally, "Blood-Red Angel"     _kisama_ - you bastard     _kotae wa!!_ - answer me!!   
  
  


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    Eiji was nothing less than emotionally devastated by the sight. His allies - his FRIENDS - were dead. Killed by the Soshiki, all because of his, Eiji Shinjo's, failed plan -- it was all his fault. Eiji could only stare at their tattered figures in disbelief, then choked, "Son'na...this...this can't be happening..." before closing his eyes and letting a lone tear slip down his cheek. But above it all, a laugh started up quietly in the background. It got louder, until it was practically ringing in Eiji's head, reverberating through the room with heavy overtones of mockery. He looked up, revenge burning in his red eyes along with the tears, to see Abel manifest from teleportation a slight ways in front of him.     "How do you like this, Eiji Shinjo?" Abel grinned evilly, motioning to the still bodies hanging from the blood-stained walls. "I call it just rewards."     Eiji said nothing, but continued to glare at Abel, his breathing turning ragged as rage overcame him, colouring his vision as red as his eyes. He rose to his feet angrily, tears running down his face. "You...YOU KILLED THEM!!! You murdering BASTARD!!! I'LL KILL YOU!!!!"     In a blind rage, Eiji rushed towards Abel, bearing his ki-flaring katana with a fiery vengeance. Abel just smiled calmly, and as Eiji got to him, ready to strike him down, he ran into a blue ki-barrier that had suddenly appeared to shield Abel's body. Eiji yelled out in pain from the electrocution and was flung backwards, hitting the floor hard and groaning in pain. Abel snickered.     "You are not powerful enough, I hate to say. And to think someone like you and those others destroyed the Himitsu Kessha's ambition. Such a pity...an unbelievable pity, but still."     Eiji only glared at Abel with enough fire in his eyes to flay him alive. "They're dead. My friends...my friends are DEAD."     "They most certainly are not, I can assure you."     "WHAT??"     Abel gestured to the chained-up figures on the wall behind him. "That was your assumption. My...partner took them out, but we left them alive so we could propose a bargain to you."     Eiji growled in response, but was massively relieved inside that they all were still alive. However, Abel's words left him a little more than suspicious. "What kind of proposition?"     The Soshiki's leader's cold green eyes seemed to glow with the hunger for power.     "I want your soul, Eiji Shinjo."     Eiji was taken aback. "What the hell do you mean by THAT?"     "It's very simple. Of course, being the experienced fighter that you are, you must know that ki originates from the powerful soul of fighters like you -- almost like a warrior spirit. Everyone has ki, but not all have the knowledge to be conscious of having it or using it for constructive uses, for that matter." Abel held up the palm of one of his hands, almost experimentally, and a blue ball of ki flared and shimmered in the open fist. "Usually, when it is thrown as a projectile, it will be absorbed into an opponent to cause them pain. However..." He abruptly snapped his hand into a fist, and the ball dissapated in a shower of sparks. The glow in his green eyes seemed to grow brighter. "If one's soul, the origin of ki, is given up freely, the full amount of ki can be absorbed for increasing power. I'm not strong enough right now to summon the Overlord. And it is with that power that I will merge with my alternate side, Veil, and raise our Overlord from the depths of hell."     "You think I'm gonna help you to do that??" Eiji raised his sword in clear defiance. "Not a chance!"     Something strange then happened. Ellis began to stir, and, hearing the last part of this conversation, she coughed slightly and attempted to speak -- though it took her a few seconds to find her voice.     "oh....god...Eiji-kun-" she whispered. "Don't...don't do it, Eiji-kun! It'll kill you!!" She actually managed to yell the last part out to Eiji, who was shocked at the sound of her familiar voice.     "Ellis-chan, you're alright..."     "Goddamn," muttered Kayin, struggling through a haze of pain to finally open one eye. "Just what the hell's going on..."     Tracy shook her head, her short blue hair now waving free of its ball cap, rattling the chains in an attempt to break free. "Great. We're chained up and beat'n within an inch of our lives. Things're lookin' up."     "David-chan--" whispered Shizuku in slight shock, seeing David chained up and still unconscious on the sacrificial altar. "David...David-chan!!"     "That is not going to help, Shizuku. He is out cold," Sofia muttered, yanking on her chained wrists as well. "He must have been beaten worse than us. There is nothing we can do right now..."     Nagisa looked over at Ellis. "What's going on down there?"     "Eiji-kun's bargaining for our lives..." was her answer in a trembling tone. "His for all of ours."     This brought out astonished protests from the wounded fighters.     "Dammit, you can't, Eiji!"     "Don't! We'll be fine!"     "We can escape on our own!!"     "You don't have to do it for us!"     Eiji was still staring at them in surprise, either from their reactions or the fact that he still couldn't believe that they were alive after what they went through. Any other normal person would have been killed by a beating that savage... Finally, after shaking his head as if to clear his mind, he turned back to Abel, hands clenched into fists and gripping the Byakko no Tachi tightly.     "I'm not helping you." He raised his family sword slightly -- a threat. "Let them go now, or else."     Abel, unaffected, simply shrugged. "Fine, have it your way. I was only making an offer. I suppose it should only be fair to kill your friends as blood sacrifices." With that, Abel raised a hand as blue ki shimmered and gathered in it, just as it had before. Impulsively, the group of fallen fighters on the wall started to be shocked with the ki-energy. They all cried out in pain, despite that they were all trying hard not to.     "Minna...!!" Eiji yelled. Abel stopped his punishment, and the warriors were all let loose from his electric ki-grip, trying to catch their breath.     "Saa, Eiji Shinjo," Abel said triumphantly, "drop your weapon or else they all die."     "Don't, Eiji-kun..." choked Ellis, a tear running down her face. _"Don't..."_     A sword hit the floor.     One of Abel's eyebrows rose in amused satisfaction. Eiji was now disarmed, and his face was almost shadowed over so none of them could see the look on it. Kayin grit his teeth through the pain and screamed, "DAMN YOU EIJI!!!"     Only silence followed, and Kayin continued in vehement fury.     "Damn you!! How...how in bloody HELL could you just give it all up NOW?? We did all we could, we came this far, and we'll keep on going, god...dammit..." Kayin's voice trailed off as he bit his lower lip, turning his head to the side and closing his eyes.     "We've made it before and we'll make it again. Even when it looked like we couldn't win, we still did it." His eyes snapped open, and everyone could clearly see the suffering - and tears? - that was reflected there. "So fight him! Don't give up!!"     "I'm not giving up." The answer sounded forced, as did what came after. "I just don't want to see you all hurt. I couldn't be able to watch it and not do anything." Eiji looked up at all of them, eyes glistening. "Minna...gomen. I can't...and if it will spare you, then..." He looked straight at Abel, unflinching. "Do it."     "With pleasure." With that, Abel raised both his hands and placed then in front of him as if in a praying position. He began to glow bright blue, ki resonating off his figure in strange patterns, pulsating and fluxuating around him. In a few short seconds, above the protesting cries of the captured fighters, Eiji's figure began to glow the same colour. Astounded, Eiji had only a moment before the ki exploded around him, and then the pain began. He screamed out in torture, feeling like indeed, his very soul was being ripped out. All the while, Abel was still bowed in hard concentration, while Eiji screamed and his friends shouted their concern.     Finally, it ended.     _Nii...san..._     Eiji's limp body fell to the floor. He wasn't breathing.     Dead?     Only silence followed, for all of the fighters were in stunned shock. None of them could say a word. Ellis's breath caught in her throat, as she tried again and again to speak but failed. Finally, she choked out, "ya...da...you--you PROMISED me...     _**"EIJI!!!!!"**_

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    Hiding in the shadows on a ledge high above the ceremony room were two watchers, seeing and knowing all of this. Fate had brought them together. Once called the two angels of the Master's apocalypse, one had previously saved the other from certain ruin, and now they couldn't be parted. For even though they were the two most powerful fighters on Earth, it would mean death for either or both...     Seeing this certain twist of fate happen, Sho Shinjo clenched a fist and looked away, trying not to see this scene. And trying to keep himself from doing what natural sibling instinct told him to do.     Beside him, his partner Cupido looked over at him. "Sho-sama...you're not going to try-"     Sho stood up abruptly, making his decision. "I can and I will."     "Baka! Sho-sama, you can't!" Cupido stepped towards him in concern. "It will jeopardize our plan!"     "The plan has failed, Cupido-kun. There's not much hope of stopping Abel now, since he's going to merge with Veil. Someone has to do something." Glancing into Cupido's deep red eyes, Sho only said, "If that was your brother Ripper down there, would you ignore it and leave him to die?" Cupido couldn't say a word. With that, Sho jumped off the ledge and down towards the floor where his younger brother was lying.     "Sho-sama, wait!!" Cupido tried and failed to stop him, then, after a moment of hesitation, leapt down after him.

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    "I have it!"     Abel was laughing again, more triumphantly than ever before. He had been successful -- he had managed to absorb the warrior Eiji's soul, and was now more powerful than any living fighter on Earth. His body glowed even brighter with luminescent, flaring blue ki. "I have the power now! Veil! We have won!!"     "Not yet."     Abel's laughing slowed, but he smiled to himself, saying only, "So you did come."     As if on cue, the thick chains bonding the six fighters to the stone walls snapped and shattered to pieces, freeing them at last. Landing deftly on their feet and, even though they were all very wounded, they rushed over to Eiji in worry. Ellis was the first one there, kneeling beside his body with tears streaming down her cheeks. Burying her face in her hands, she sobbed, "No, Eiji-kun!! You can't leave me now!! You promised me you wouldn't!! EIJI-KUN!!!"     The others, Kayin, Sofia, Tracy, Nagisa, and Shizuku couldn't hold back their tears as they watched Ellis continue to cry her heart out over their fallen leader. Sensing another, stronger presence behind them, Kayin glanced over his shoulder and his face went white. "God..." he whispered, seeing the tall, long-haired figure pacing towards them. "_Sho..._"     All of the warriors stopped and stared. As Sho reached them, they all parted away from Eiji's body in astonishment. Ellis, her arms around Eiji, could only whisper, "It...it's you..." Staring only for a moment more, Ellis stood up and stepped aside with no answer. Bending over and picking up his brother's limp body, Sho just stared at Eiji for a second, looking, for him, unusually concerned. Finally, he closed his eyes, and spoke.     "Shinda."     Again, silence settled over the dark room, no one knowing what to say or do. The sound of thunder boomed from outside, echoeing ominously throughout the chamber, and it was all that could be heard. Cupido stepped out of the shadows to Sho, placing a hand on his shoulder and whispering, "Sho-sama..." Sho placed Eiji's body on the ground gently and rose, but he was intercepted by Ellis who looked furious, even for her.     Gritting her teeth, she faced him and said in a sharp tone, "You. It is you then. You're Eiji's brother, aren't you?" No reply. "You know, he's been looking for you for so long. You hurt him so badly by running off and leaving him alone. So why do you show up now, huh? Why?" Still no reply, although Cupido stood up in fury after checking Eiji's body for nonexistent signs of life. "How dare you speak to Sho-sama in that manner!" she spat.     "Shut up! Just _shut up!!_" yelled Ellis back in return, surprising Cupido with the rage in her high-pitched voice. Turning back to Sho, Ellis continued. "You destroyed the Himitsu Kessha. And you're probably the most powerful of us all. So why...why didn't you save your own brother, dammit?!?" With that, Ellis fiercely slapped Sho across the face. Everyone gasped, including Cupido. Glaring at him with wet streaks down her face, Ellis finished by whispering, "I am in love with your brother. And though he may forgive you, I never will. What you've done to him is unforgivable. What kind of a brother are you?"     Sho was silent. So was everyone else, for that matter, all waiting for his reply, his reaction. Finally, it came.     "A brother who didn't want this burden of a responsibility, to have to choose between his humanity and life, and the safety of his world. If I had had a choice, Ellis, I wouldn't have ever chosen the path that I did."     Disregarding the look on Cupido's face, Sho slowly unsheathed his samurai katana, raising it and bringing it down in an identical pose to Eiji's, his eyes blazing the same colour: purely blood-red. Holding his arm out, as if to keep the others back, he walked slowly towards Abel, who had only a calm look on his face. He was snickering. "So, the almighty Kesshoku no Tenshi finally appears from the shadows. Quite a clever trick you and the other angel pulled on that foolish Master last year. It had us all fooled. But to bring you out of hiding, it took the death of your not-so-beloved little brother to do so. We should have done that sooner. You emotion-ruled cowards are all the same, it appears."     Without saying a word, Sho simply pointed his sword at Abel's throat. "Kisama. Do you really think you have won?" When there was no answer, Sho grit his teeth and yelled, "KOTAE WA!!"     It was a simple answer.     "Who would there be to stand against me now?"     With that, Abel began to glow bright blue again, and he teleported out of the blade's range. Suddenly, a fierce wind began to explode and gust around them, causing Sho and Cupido to have to brace themselves against it, while all the others were flung backwards by its power. The howling wind also exploded around David's chained body on the podium, the force of it causing him to groan and stir slightly. Shizuku, though she was down stomach-first on the ground, called out to him in worry and relief. "David-chan!!"     "Uhh...Shizuku..?" he said back, almost stupidly. When he noticed the situation he was in, David fought against pain to attempt to break the chains. "Damn! I can't get free!"     "I'll come!" Shizuku got up and started towards the altar, but Cupido held her back. "No! We need all the warriors we can get. He...is coming."     Nagisa looked oddly at Cupido. "'He'?"     "Veil," said Sho solemnly, a grimace on his face.     "You wanna try and explain what the hell's goin' on??" Tracy demanded, waving one of her tonfa at the eldest Shinjo. Cupido shook her head in response instead. "There is no easy way for us to describe it-"     Sofia stepped forward, fixing the older woman with a steely blue glare. "Try us."     "I can try to explain."     "Sho-sama...?" Cupido glanced at her partner questioningly, but he only shook his head. "They deserve to know what they will be fighting against, Cupido-kun. You know that we should at least tell them that."     Cupido nodded and fell silent, knowing that he was right. Surveying the group of remaining fighters, armed and ready for battle, Sho sighed and began the explanation. "Veil is a...being, one of immense power. It originally was a manifestation of the dark power amassed by Abel, so you could almost think of Veil as being another "half" of Abel. Veil was sealed deep in the underworld, but since the ceremonies held by the Soshiki have been taking place, the seal holding Veil has been loosened, allowing him almost a passageway into our world -- through Abel. And if Abel was to ever merge with Veil again..." Sho stopped, staring silently at large, concentrating figure of Abel, the mystical powers gathering around him in a dark cloud.     "Then he would have enough power to summon Agon Teos himself, without the use of a host body."     All eyes turned upwards, to the platform on which David was chained. "Thank God..." Shizuku exhaled in relief. "So will this 'Veil' summon Agon Teos right away?"     "Most likely."     "Hold on a second!" Kayin said indignantely, glaring at his former teacher. "We have to fight a GOD? Are you serious?? You know none of us are strong enough for that!!"     "None...except Eiji-kun."     Responsively, everyone turned at the sound of Ellis' voice behind them. She was still with Eiji's body, but although the tears had stopped, her voice betrayed her sadness. She turned her large blue eyes on the group of fighters, but more particularly on Sho and Cupido. "Why does it have to be this way? Why does it always have to be US?? It was because of this...that Eiji...Eiji....."     "Ellis," Cupido began, her lilting voice sounding strangely out-of-place, "destiny is-"     "Don't you DARE try to tell me that it was his destiny to die!!" Ellis cried, standing up quickly. "You always saw what would happen to us in the future! Why didn't you see this? Why didn't you WARN us??"     "I did."     "What...?"     "I did tell Eiji what would happen. But he understood. He was willing to die for all of you." Cupido looked at all of the fighters in turn, red eyes almost glowing slightly. "That was the one thing none of you knew. He had planned to die for you from the beginning. He knew what would happen, and yet he agreed to die. It was his decision."     Stunned, Ellis sank back to the ground. "I...had no idea...God, Eiji..." She brushed a few locks of his spiky hair away from his still face, tears welling up in her sapphire eyes again. "I've never known anyone so brave-"     "But that was Eiji," Kayin said in a low, husky voice, kneeling next to the gypsy girl. "He...wouldn't let anyone interfere with his problems. He kept things to himself, he..." After truly seeing his best friend dead, Kayin choked for a second, then covered his eyes with his hand and whispered, "Jesus Christ, why did it have to come to this...??"     "He understood."     Everyone looked at Sho, who had just spoken. Eiji's brother sighed, then continued. "After all this, he finally understood. And that was what mattered all along." Sho looked over his shoulder, then said, "But what truly matters now is that your destiny has almost come. The legend's final battle is about to begin."     Ellis shook her head repeatedly. "I don't want to fight. I won't."     "Ellis, try to understand. Eiji knew what would happen if he fought, knew that he'd have to sacrifice himself to save all of you, so you can't give up this chance he made. He did it for all of you, to save this world -- he died for-"     "That's all fighting results in!" Everyone was surprised by the sadness and hopelessness in the young girl's voice. Ellis locked eyes with Eiji's brother, the familiarity of the crimson red hue all too painful. "It only results in tragedy and death. Nothing else." She flung one arm out behind her, motioning to the crumbling room, the wounded fighters, and their leader lying on the floor, lifeless. "What good can ever come of this?"     Neither Sho nor Cupido said anything to that, but Sofia stepped forwards, and knelt down to Ellis' height. "We can save the world. Is that not a good enough reason to fight?"     Ellis was speechless. Tracy took a few steps towards the girl, and placed a hand on her shoulder. "Eiji...would have wanted us to fight," she said gently. "He believed in me even after my sister died. He'd want us to go on." Nagisa nodded in agreement with his female partner. "I didn't know him that well, but he looked like the kind who'd give it his all. So now it's up to us to do it for him."     "I agree," Shizuku said. "He left it up to us, mina-san, so we have to make sure we succeed. Otherwise his sacrifice will be for nothing."     Ellis still didn't say anything, but watched as Kayin rose from beside her. "Kayin...?" Her voice was little more than a slight sound in the darkness.     "He trusted us to save the world..." Kayin clenched a fist painfully, then reached for Excalibur's grip and drew his sword slowly. "So we can't let him down!"     Ellis gazed at all of her friends, weapons drawn, ready to fight to the end. She glanced once more at Eiji's face, and for a moment, she thought she could hear him speak.     _Remember what you always said, Ellis-chan: Never give up. Fight, for me..._     She smiled. _I - WE will, Eiji-kun. Wait for us..._     With that, Ellis rose, pulling out her twin Dirks and joining her friends as a group -- the warriors chosen by the legend, Toshinden.     "Good," said Cupido. "It appears that now, you all understand as well. Then, the final battle shall begin."     "What...?" Almost suddenly, everyone became aware of the loud roaring sound of the wind, filling the room with deafening noise. Lightning constantly crackled overhead, illuminating the dark chamber. But the lightning wasn't all that was brightening the sacrifice room -- Abel's crouched form was steadily glowing a more and more intense bluish-white. The very ground itself underneath him was starting to crumble away from the massive concentration of ki.     "What is this??" Shizuku cried, raising one kimono sleeve to shield her face from the flying debris.     "The summoning..." Cupido murmured, but strangely enough, everyone could hear her soft words -- and remarkably, both she and Sho were still standing. Sho narrowed his eyes, focusing on Abel. "Veil has awakened."     In that one instant, Abel's eyes opened, but they weren't an icy green like before -- they were glowing a pure shade of purple. He rose from the ground and yelled, his scream mingling with the thunder and wind, and a bright flash of energy exploded from his body, causing everyone to hit the floor and shield their eyes from the release of power. When the light died down and the group looked up again, Abel's transformation was apparent.     His form was now even larger than before, casting a huge shadow from the lightning's illumination -- except that he was no longer on the floor; now, he was hovering over the ground. His body was now covered in glistening black metal armour, highlighted with numerous gold and silver buckles. A huge red gem of some sort glittered on his chest, pulsating along with the fluxuation of ki. His face was now deathly white, and his eyes - now glowing a deep purple - were both streaked over by a single slash of blue. His orange hair was standing up in an even wilder shape than before, held back only by a red metal headband. This new being - if it could even still be considered Abel at all - stared over the eight fighters before him with what might have been considered a sneer on his face.     **"Insignificant fools..."** His resounding words could even be heard over the howling cacophony. But his voice was oddly wrong -- it now sounded as if it was two voices mingled together. Veil raised both his armoured hands, and slowly, a pair of shining daggers, made of pure purple ki-energy, formed at his wrists. **"You had no idea what you were getting into, coming here and challenging us."**     "We knew!" yelled Kayin, pointing his sword at Veil. "And we're still going to kick your ass!"     Veil chuckled, an evil sound that rang off the walls of the room. **"But I am not to be your opponent."**     "Not our opponent...?" Sofia said. "What do you mean by that?"     The floating Veil said nothing in return, but simply lifted both hands to the violent sky, and the lightning started streaking more rapidly than before. He tilted his head back and called, **"You shall all be sacrifices for the Toshin itself! AGON TEOS!!!"**     As soon as he said the words, the ground began to rumble and shake violently beneath them. Lightning began shooting through the gaping hole in the ceiling and striking the center spot of the room, as well as ripping up other parts of the walls and floor. The wind began whipping around the room at an even faster speed than before, carrying the crackling electricity to every inch of the sacrificial chamber. All of the fighters, save for Sho and Cupido (who were still standing with no visible effort, not looking the least bit concerned), stumbled at the shaking movement of the terrain beneath them.     "Everybody, hit the floor! NOW!!" hollered Kayin. No one really needed to be told; they all did so quickly, in order to avoid the chunks of stone raining down around them, the furious wind and the lightning. And Veil's laugh could still be heard, the tone being carried over the thunderous havoc beneath him.     Watching the chaos unfold below, David felt more helpless than he ever had in his young life. He wasn't needed to be a host body anymore, but...he couldn't watch Shizuku, and his fellow fighters, the ones who had believed in him, be slaughtered by an enemy they couldn't hope to defeat. David had caught a glimpse of the Toshin once, and the image had never left him.     _But you have the same power, don't you..._     The sudden realization stunned the boy. It was true. Ever since the first failed ceremony, the one where the Soshiki had attempted to make him the host body for the Toshin, David had felt that he had...powers. And it was only now that he truly understood -- it was because for a brief second, maybe not even that, he had been bonded to Agon Teos. The encounter, though lost, had left him with the hauntingly-powerful ki that he could control at will -- a power that he had never had before. The lessened power of a god.     Now, his friends needed his help.     "God...DAMMIT..." he growled, straining and pulling on the chains with all the strength he had. "I have to...get free...NOW!!"     As soon as he said those words, a strange power surged from his body through the heavy chains, and they exploded, crumbling into dust. Without even hesitating, David leapt off the sacrificial platform, towards the gathered fighters below.     "David-chan!!" Shizuku screamed in concern as she saw the boy land on the ground unsteadly, nearly falling over in the process. He heard her voice, and attempted to make his way to the group, although stumbling and tripping from the unsteady ground. "Shi...Shizu--DAMMIT! Shizuku!!" Finally, he made it to his foster mother, and helped her up, supporting her lithe body with his own.     As soon as she could stand on her own, Shizuku looked David over in concern. "David-chan, are you hurt?"     "I-huh??" Upon closer examination, David noticed that there was no evidence on his body that the prior beating had ever happened -- all his wounds had mysteriously healed. The only obvious way of telling that he had been fighting was the tattered, blood-stained trenchcoat that hung from his lanky frame. "That's strange...I could have sworn-"     "David?? How did you get free?" Ellis' sweet voice sounded from behind him, and David turned around to see the rest of the fighters attempting to regain their footing as well. He looked at his gloved hands, then clenched them into fists. "I...I don't know. But it doesn't matter now." He glared at Veil. "He's summoning Agon Teos. I can feel it...it's the same as right before the ceremony..."     "The reckoning has begun," said Sho simply.     The fighters could only watch in stunned shock as Veil raised his daggered hands, collecting massive waves of purple energy into the weapons. After the lightblades began to crackle with an overflow of ki, Veil thrust the harnessed energy downwards towards the center of the room with a delighted scream. The blast hit the ground, and absorbed into the floor.     The shaking stopped. Along with the lightning, wind, and thunder -- it all just died down suddenly.     And the ground began to open up in the middle of the room.     A fiery blast of kinetic energy exploded from the opening crevice, throwing all the fighters to their knees. Raging flames licked upwards from between the cracking rock, and then, all of a sudden, in one mighty burst that scattered fire across the room, SOMETHING rose out of the hellfire-ridden chasm.     "What the..." Kayin said, attempting to shield himself from the searing flames. "What the hell is going on?!"     "Oh, it's quite simple," Cupido replied quietly, watching the monstrous beast unfurl before them. "It's the beginning of the end."     And with a bellowing roar, Agon Teos, the Toshin itself, rose to confront them.

**********


	13. Final Chapter: Rebirth

**_In a world of darkness sanctioned by evil,  
where the only light of hope is a group of unlikely heroes,  
the legend's final chapter is about to end..._**

**- TOH SHIN DEN III: Walking Into Ruin -**

_a Battle Arena Toshinden 3 fanfiction by Athena Asamiya and Kasumi Todoh_

  
**THE FINAL CHAPTER: Rebirth**   
  
**Translations:**     _minna_ - everyone     _ganbare_ - good luck     _damare!!_ - shut up!!     _jikan da_ - it's time     _baka_ - idiot     _gaijin_ - foreigner     _arigatou gozaimasu_ - thank you     _otousan_ - father   
  
  


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    He could almost not feel the pain. And yet it lingered, not completely gone, like a wound that refused to heal. He floated through its haze, unable to see, hear, think. And yet, he was conscious of a bright light that had surfaced outside of this world of agony.     Struggling against torment to see the source of the light beyond his eyes, he forced himself to crack one eye open...and all he could see around him was murky darkness. Darkness penetrated only by one shining light, straight ahead of him, winking and symbolizing a future without pain, sorrow.     He struggled again, this time for a different reason. "....no....."     He stopped in mid-space. ".....No...."     He whispered again, "No....I...I can't....stay.....I have...have to....go....back....."     But would it - whatever IT was - let him?

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    **YOU.**     The monster spoke. And it was unlike anything anyone had ever heard before -- then again, it was also unlike anything anyone had ever SEEN before. It was gargantuan, about thirty feet tall or taller, with a thick torso and two arms and legs -- but the human resemblance stopped there. Its face was a cross between human and ogre, with large fangs and huge, glowing red eyes. Its skin was a mottled brown-and-green, almost resembling scales, and huge claws protruded from its hands. A pair of enormous wings extended from its back, nearly filling the ruined room, and it appeared to be wearing some sort of strange battle armour, still dripping with flame. Its glowing eyes were not set on the group of fighters before it; rather, they were focused on Veil, who was bowed on one knee. **"My lord Agon Teos, you have been resurrected at last! The world is ours to rule!"**     Agon Teos didn't reply; it simply made a sound that appeared to be a displeased growl. And it spoke again, without its mouth even moving.     **I HAVE NO NEED FOR SUCH A PITIFUL BEING. DISAPPEAR.**     **"W-what??"** Veil scrambled to his feet in dismay, but he was only a second too late. Agon Teos raised its arms, and a huge ball of fiery ki began to gather at its center. Without even moving, Agon Teos flung the energy right at Veil. Everyone could hear his tortured screams as he was engulfed in the fire-energy. When the ki dissapated, there was nothing left of Veil except for a half-broken red jewel. It wasn't glowing anymore.     "Holy...SHIT..." muttered Tracy in awe. "This thing has THAT much power...??"     Agon Teos let out what sounded to be a deep chuckle. **HOW PATHETIC.** With Veil dead, it turned its attention to the small band of warriors that stood before it, weapons ready. But rather, the being paused, apparently eyeing Sho and Cupido.     **ANGELS. WHAT BUSINESS HAVE YOU WITH THE TOSHIN?**     "None, Toshin-sama," Cupido replied smoothly, despite the obvious fact that she was talking to a fiery behemoth. "We were not the ones who summoned you here."     "It was the Soshiki and their ceremony," Sho explained. "However," here he smirked slightly, "it obviously failed."     **I SEE.** Agon Teos moved its giant head, almost seeming to regard the other warriors behind the two. **AND WHAT OF THEM? ARE THEY THE ONES CHOSEN BY THE LEGEND?**     "They are." Cupido paused, but then continued. "And as your legend decreed, Toshin-sama, the sacred battle is to begin now."     **THE FIGHT IS STILL TO TAKE PLACE.**     "Of course," Sho replied without hesitation. "But we are no part of it, as you know."     **GOOD. THEN THE BATTLE SHALL COMMENCE.**     Sho and Cupido both nodded, but the rest of the fighters were left a little more unsettled. Kayin marched up to Sho, spun him around and yelled, "You blasted coward!! You're going to leave us to fight a god ALONE?!?"     Eiji's brother simply closed his eyes and brushed past Kayin, murmuring, "Weren't you the one who said that you could all get through anything, if you tried?"     "I-" Kayin started, but realized that Sho was right. Sho raised one eyebrow, then continued past him, saying, "Then why don't you start believing your own words? That was something you never did..." And it was here that Kayin thought he caught the faintest flicker of a smile, of the old teacher he had known for so long. "...Kayin-chan."     As he and Cupido started to leave the group, Ellis called out, "Wait!"     They turned around, and she asked, "Are...are we supposed to fight this thing? Alone?"     Cupido only smiled and shook her eyes, red eyes flashing. "Not alone. Together. Fight together, and you stand a chance of winning. Just remember, none of you may come out of the battle alive. You're fighting for your lives. Don't any of you forget that."     "Like we even could!" Tracy groaned. "The odds are lookin' pretty stacked against us..."     "But we have a chance," David said, stepping forward. "I don't know about the rest of you, but that's good enough for me."     Nagisa nodded, cocking his gun. "Kid's got a point. So, let's get to it."     As the rest of the group got ready for the fight, Ellis gazed back at Eiji's still body on the floor. _Wish us luck, Eiji-kun. We're going to do this, for you..._ She held up one silver Dirk. "Minna, ganbare!"     Surprisingly, Shizuku started the fight first, by running straight for the Toshin and jumping into the air. She pulled a fistful of daggers out of her kimono sleeve, and tossed them right at Agon Teos. However, each one seemed to fall short within inches of the hitting Agon Teos -- deflected by a force field? Shocked that her attack didn't work, Shizuku landed then rushed forward again, spinning her staff in front of her and jumping up, twisting her whole body as well as her weapon into the attack. "YUME-SAKURA!"     The Toshin looked little concerned at the woman attacking him, and in one motion, swept its giant hand back, then smacked Shizuku out of the air. She smashed into the ground with a loud cry of pain.     "Shizuku!" yelled David in concern. He started towards her, but Kayin held him back. "Don't worry about her -- we have to keep the fight up!"     With that, Kayin raced towards the beast and held his sword out in front of him, closing his eyes and gathering all the ki he could muster into its blade. The Toshin sneered, obviously not impressed by the show of power.     _That's gonna change, bitch,_ Kayin thought angrily as he opened his eyes. With a loud yell, he released the gathered ki in one energy blast that lit up the room. There was a loud explosion when the energy came into contact with the unmoving god.     "YES!" exclaimed Kayin, grinning and making a fist. But the smile slowly disappeared as the dust cleared, revealing the undamaged Toshin -- surrounded by a glowing force field barrier. The blast hadn't even touched it.     **YOU WILL HAVE TO DO BETTER THAN THAT TO DEFEAT ME.**     "Yeah? Then how about this??" Tracy yelled, leaping forward and spinning upwards, surrounded by yellow sparks of ki. "ELECTRO SPARTAN!"     Even though she made contact, the powerful uppercut attack didn't seem to have any effect on the Toshin. Tracy landed, stumbling, and tried to back away, but the Toshin was too fast for her. It lifted its foot and brought it down, swiftly -- right on the spot where Tracy would have been, if she hadn't rolled out of the way just in time. Nagisa growled at the sight of his partner nearly being stomped on, and let loose with a furious hail of bullets from his gun. However, these too only dissapated against the barrier surrounding the Toshin. Ellis took to the air and, calling, "SCREW DANCING!" aimed her attack right for its face. She learned too late that her aerial attack had had no effect -- the uninjured Toshin snatched her out of the air, and flung her to the floor. Her light body skidded almost to the other side of the room.     Kayin attempted to fight back with a Deadly Raise, but was sent back to the ground again. Tracy and Nagisa attacked from both sides, Tracy with her tonfas and Nagisa with his knife, but neither had any effect on the monstrous god. While it was distracted with them, Sofia leapt into the air and attempted an Aurora Revolution, hoping to succesfully strike it with her whip, but that didn't work either. Agon Teos raised a giant fist and brought it towards her with the force of a battering ram. Such power would have no doubt killed an ordinary person, but Sofia was only knocked out of the air with a shriek. Kayin tried to catch her, but she was flung with such force that they were both thrown to the floor. Shizuku attempted to attack with a combination of daggers and slashes from her staff, but neither were effective, and she too went sailing to the floor.     After landing from an unsuccessful Arc Slash to the Toshin's massive back, Ellis called out to David, "We have to draw its attention away from the others! You with me?"     David nodded, holding up his pistol. "Got it!"     With that, the two young fighters launched a double-attack from behind, with David firing several shots into the Toshin's unprotected back, while Ellis dashed in with a Soar Wind from above. Agon Teos turned around, but was rather slow in doing so, and both David and Ellis were able to penetrate the force field and land a substantial amount of hits before being knocked aside like toys. However, this distraction also drew its attention away from the other downed fighters, who were now able to get a clear view of the two people responsible for the interruption.     "Ellis!!"     "David-chan!!"     Hearing their voices, Ellis muttered, "I'm...not done yet..." and got back up off the ground slowly, followed by a silent David. The gypsy girl then attempted to distract the Toshin further with her Homing Swallow move, flying around it several times. She was thrown out of the air by the Toshin's massive hand, and was hurled to the floor again. This time, the Toshin approached her, raising a fist menacingly. **ANNOYING INSECT.**     "ELLIS!!" David's voice rang throughout the room. He couldn't tear his eyes away from the sight of Ellis, the girl who had managed to bring him back to humanity, lying motionless on the floor and about to be killed by the God of Fight. The Toshin turned its attention away from Ellis to the young boy behind it. Growling, David glared at the Toshin, somehow finding the strength to get up again. He was the only one standing.     "I won't let you do this..." His voice was dangerously low, but he could still be heard by everyone. David pulled one gloved fist back, and waves of ki began to converge around his hand. The power began to circle around him, whipping his torn trenchcoat in all directions. The Toshin watched this, amused. **SO YOUR POWER HAS GROWN THAT MUCH SINCE THE CEREMONY. INTERESTING.**     David closed his eyes and grit his teeth tighter, silently pleading, _Dammit, let this work!_ Taking a deep breath, David yelled in fury, and thrust the swirling power forward, aimed directly at Agon Teos.     **HOU...I SEE.** The god seemed only a little surprised at the amount of power that the young boy had managed to gather, which was now speeding towards it. The Toshin simply amassed ki of its own, collecting it between its clawed hands -- the same fiery ki it had used to destroy Veil. Right before David's energy connected, Agon Teos released its own power, clashing against David's in an explosive display. David grimaced, and pressed on harder, channeling as much ki as he could muster through his fist. With a yell, David raised his other fist, and blasted away at the Toshin with both hands.     **HMMMMM...IMPRESSIVE,** The Toshin sneered, continuing to counter David's attack with its own. **BUT I HAVE HAD ENOUGH OF THIS GAME.** And with one giant burst of energy, Agon Teos managed to overpower David, its energy engulfing his and smashing a shocked David into the wall at the other side of the room. He crumpled to the floor, unmoving.     "David-chan!" shrieked Shizuku in concern. Kayin watched from the floor, then simply shook his head. "Nothing we've done has worked. God, what can we do...?"     "Let's try again," pleaded Ellis. "Just once more, okay? We can't give up now! Eiji-kun would-"     "Eiji's DEAD, Ellis." The harshness in Kayin's words surprised everyone. "He's dead and there's nothing more we can do about any of this."     Ellis stared at him for a second, before saying in return, "Then does that mean we should die too?? Let the Toshin loose on the Earth?? Because I'm not going to let that happen!"     Kayin sighed at the girl's words, before gripping his sword again and getting to his feet with some difficulty. "All right. We'll try again. I want to end this thing, now."     The wounded fighters all staggered to their feet - except for David, who was out cold - trying to gather enough strength to continue with another group assault. However, the towering Agon Teos wasn't too pleased with them.     **YOU HAVE ALL SHOWN ADMIRABLE RESISTANCE. HOWEVER, YOU HAVE ALL ALSO SHOWN FATAL FLAWS. THIS IS THE REWARD FOR YOUR MISTAKES.**     With those thundering words, the Toshin began to collect masses of fiery ki, forming a large globe between its claws that crackled with power. In one unmoving motion, Agon Teos fired the mass of energy right at the group of fighters, the trailing power ripping up the ground and walls. They all braced themselves and attempted to stay firm, but the force of the flames was too much for any of them. One by one, all the fighters were blown off their feet and scattered around the room in disarray. Few of them moved.     The Toshin regarded the small group of fighters laid out on the ground around it, all injured and barely conscious after the hellish energy blast. **HOW UNIMPRESSIVE. THE BATTLE SHALL END NOW.**     Immediately, the god began to summon another huge amount of ki, the raw, pure power pooling between its massive claws. The brilliance of the energy illuminated the ruins of the room, as well as the bodies of the warriors on the ground, who all attempted to weakly protect themselves. Kayin grimaced, but was in so much pain he was unable to move. He barely managed to slam a fist into the floor. _Goddammit...not us...not now..._     _Eiji-kun..._ Ellis thought helplessly, lying on her back and watching Agon Teos prepare to destroy them with teary eyes. She closed her eyes to shut the vision out for good. _I'm sorry...we couldn't do it...I'm so, so sorry..._

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    But Sho and Cupido were still watching from the shadows, observing the entire fight -- and what looked to be the end of the fighters they had aided for the past three years. Unflinching, Sho simply commented, "They failed."     Cupido exhaled in what sounded like a sigh, and looked up at her partner. "Isn't there anything we can do?"     "It isn't our place to help them. You know that."     "I do know. But..." She shook her head, lifting her halberd. "I won't let this happen. I can't."     The two of them looked at each other solemnly for a moment, both remembering what it would mean if one of them were to interfere on this, the battle sanctioned by the sacred legend. Finally, Sho turned away, saying quietly, "Do what you have to do."     Cupido smiled. "I will." She prepared to leave, but first, walked over to her partner slowly, and, with a bit of hesitation, kissed him. When they broke away, his eyes betrayed his surprise, but Cupido only turned to go. However, she looked back over her shoulder at him, the eyes of the angels meeting and sharing an emotion that they never had before. And she spoke in her lilting voice, somehow sounding sadder than usual.     "For all that you've done for me..."     Then she disappeared into the chaos.     "Cupido....CUPIDO!!!!"

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    Watching the Toshin prepare for their destruction, one by one, the fighters gave up hope. It was the end for them, and any chance for saving their world. As the Toshin released the energy towards them in one explosive blast, everyone could only close their eyes, and wait for the end.     However, it was an end that didn't come.     "AEGIS WALL!!!!"     Everyone looked up in surprise to see the woman known only as Cupido, halberd raised, creating a golden force field around them that was shielding them from the destructive ki. Her purple hair and maroon shawl were being tossed about by the mystical winds of the energy, but she didn't seem to have a problem keeping the barrier up, despite the immense power it was blocking. However, the Toshin's attack continued to beat mercilessly against the energy wall, the two powers clashing in an awesome display.     **ANGEL...YOU DEFY ME AND MY LEGEND? _YOU??_** The Toshin's words were bellowed throughout the room, while Cupido glared back without a word. The god growled unpleasantly. **YOU WERE LOYAL TO ME AND TOSHINDEN. AND NOW, YOU TURN AGAINST THE VERY FATE YOU HELPED TO CONCEIVE??**     Cupido's red eyes narrowed.     "There is no fate."     **THEN SO BE IT.**     With a loud roar, the power streaming from the Toshin's hands exploded, and a huge wave of energy coursed through the beam of ki -- right at Cupido. She only had time to gasp before Agon Teos' energy overpowered her Aegis Wall. Her shattered scream echoed off the walls as the ki jolted through her.     Ellis opened her mouth to cry out in concern, but another voice did that for her.     "CUPIDO, NO!!!"     At the sound of the voice, Agon Teos halted the flow of energy, but it had been more than enough. Gasping, Cupido slid to the ground, motionless. And before anyone could even blink, Sho was there, looking uncharacteristically upset. He propped her up gently, repeating her name over and over again. "Cupido, can you hear me? You can't let it end like this...Cupido!!"     **I THOUGHT THE ANGELS WERE FAR MORE CAPABLE THAN THAT.** Agon Teos cocked its head, speaking more to Sho than anyone else. **NOT VERY INTELLIGENT OF HER, TO GO AGAINST THE LEGEND WHEN SHE KNEW THE CONSEQUENCES.**     Sho growled, yelling, "DAMARE!!" at the monster before turning back to his fallen partner.     "Cupido..." he repeated again quietly, and at the sound of his voice, she moved slightly, opening her eyes a crack.     "Sho...Kessho..ku....no...Tenshi...." she choked, raising one hand limply. He grasped it tightly, and the two warriors' eyes met, the same hue of blood-red.     "I'm here, Cupido...it's going to be all right...you understand? It's going to be okay..."     She closed her eyes, weakly shaking her head from side to side. "....no...I..did what I...had to do....and I have....to pay the price now..."     Sho shook his head, strands of his long hair falling into his face. "Don't talk like that. You're not going to die now. I won't let that happen!"     Cupido attempted to speak again, but her breath caught in her throat, and she gasped for air for a moment while a thin streak of blood ran from her ruby lips down the side of her pale face. She whispered, "I never was....a goddess, you know....it's what..I was told....and what I..believed...."     "I know. I knew it all along." He didn't take his eyes away from hers. And he murmured softly, "But you were an angel, and that's all that mattered. To me or anyone else."     Cupido smiled, painfully, through her tears. "....He's waiting for you, you know....so please, take care of him....our shining star...."     Then, she fell silent, and didn't wake up.

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    Now, he was more awake, though still floating in agony. But he knew he had to fight against its pull. He couldn't leave his world. Not now, not leaving matters so unfinished.     "No...!" he yelled at the obscuring blackness. "I'm not...staying! I have...have to...go back! I have to...save our world...or else...or else no one will..."     He took a breath, trying to ease the pain. "I...started this...now I...have to...finish it. Only...I...can..."     And a deep, resonating voice rang out from the light and the darkness. The voice of destiny and the legend.     **Jikan da.**

    And, in reality, in the battle arena, Eiji began to rise from the floor.

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    **SO, BLOOD-RED ANGEL, WOULD YOU CARE TO CHALLENGE ME TOO?** The Toshin addressed Sho, with a hint of almost mocking in its booming voice. Sho refused to look up, refusing to acknowledge that the god had just spoken to him. He was still holding Cupido's body.     "Sho..." muttered Kayin, his eyes never leaving his old teacher. Finally, Sho placed Cupido's body on the ground gently, then stood up, his back turned to Agon Teos. His eyes were closed, and he muttered five simple words.     "I will not allow this."     And with that, he turned around to face the Toshin, face expressionless, slowly unsheathing his sword. As he stepped into his common fighting stance, as he had so many times over in the past, Sho prepared for the fight. But just as he tensed for the first attack, something stopped him.     A single, slight wave of power reached his acute senses. Slowly, the power began to increase, the energy obviously surging from one source. It was ki, and strong ki at that. But it was different, strange -- it wasn't like anything he'd ever felt before. It couldn't have been any of the other fighters summoning that power; they were all too weak. _Then who-_     Sho turned around to see his little brother getting up from the floor.     The other fighters all gasped in surprise at the sight of their previously-dead leader, standing again, surrounded by luminous sparks of bluish-white ki. "Oh my God..." Ellis whispered in disbelief. "Eiji...???"     But Eiji didn't respond, didn't even raise his head to answer them. He simply bent down and picked up the Byakko no Tachi from where it had been lying next to him, and held it out in front of him with both hands, the sparking ki swirling around him.     Sho, meanwhile, had been almost as surprised as the rest of the group at the sight of Eiji, back to life. Seeing what his little brother was planning to do, Sho only closed his eyes and smiled. He re-sheathed his sword and stepped to the side, giving Eiji a clear shot at the Toshin.     "...But don't you dare miss, baka," he murmured. Eiji didn't respond to this either, but almost seemed to smile.     But the Toshin obviously wasn't smiling. It growled again, not liking the sight of one of its downed opponents gathering so much power. Power that they shouldn't even be able to have access to, let alone use...but then, Agon Teos recognized him. And it made a noise that sounded like a series of snickers. **IT IS THE MISTAKE. WHAT CAN YOU POSSIBLY DO, AS ONE WHO WAS NEVER MEANT TO BE IN MY LEGEND?**     Eiji didn't answer, didn't look up, but continued to stand in place, sword held out and ki gathering around him. A small flicker of white flame began to trail around his feet, and then a circle of pure white energy beams began swirling around him. The beams slowly grew higher and higher, churning faster than before, sending sparks of blue ki into the air. The brightness of the ki luminated the room; so much so that many of the fighters had to cover their eyes.     "EIJI!!" yelled Ellis in concern. But Eiji still stood silently in the middle of the energy inferno, concentrating, the white beams appearing almost solid as they twisted around him at high speed. The blue sparks rose upwards, creating a sparkling column in the air.     The Toshin started to take a wary step backwards at the feeling of the massive flow of power. **THIS IS...IMPOSSIBLE!!**     Eiji's voice rang throughout the room in response.     "You may be the Toshin..." His red eyes snapped open, and the fluxuating power around him exploded with a loud roar.     **_"...BUT WE ARE THE TRUE FIGHTING GODS!!!"_**     In one dramatic instant, Eiji lifted the Byakko no Tachi over his head, and the maelstrom of energy all fused into the sword, as if it were being absorbed. And Eiji swung his sword forwards, the white ki-power erupting from the blade and spinning towards the Toshin, a column of pure, blinding-white energy surrounded by blue sparks. The god bellowed, attempting to shield itself from the attack, but it was too much for it to take.     **NOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!**     The energy struck the Toshin in its midsection, shattering its armour and blowing a hole right through its body. The Toshin screamed horribly, and rays of multicoloured light began shooting out of its body. Everyone watched as the Toshin, Agon Teos, disentegrated in front of their eyes, dissolving into small balls of light. With one loud explosion, the Toshin disappeared, the balls of light twinkling and rising up, through the hole in the ceiling, disappearing into the clearing sky above.     With his task accomplished, Eiji fell to the floor, sword clattering against the ground as it left his hand. Everything started to blur. He could just barely hear the sound of footsteps, racing towards him, voices saying his name. But he could clearly hear Ellis' voice, echoeing, calling him desperately, following him down into the spiralling darkness once again. _Ellis-chan..._     And Eiji Shinjo died, with what could have been seen as a smile on his face.

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    I was seven years old when my world changed forever. At the time, I was too young to understand or comprehend just what had happened, and how it would forever affect my life. All I knew was that in the space of a few short moments, my parents were dead, my brother and I were left alone to the world, and neither of us could possibly have understood what we had just gotten into. Because it was at that point that we had unknowingly accepted our destiny -- a destiny that neither of us wanted. Thanks to some unwanted twist of fate, it was the two of us who were fated to save the world. Or destroy it.     We grew up fast after that, my brother and I. We were all we had left, and we were determined to make it on our own, to not let our parents' murder hinder us from living. But at the same time, I knew my brother had changed. He wasn't the same that he used to be, although one would say that that was normal, given the circumstances. But I noticed something more, and it frightened me. We used to be such children, typical ones -- playing games, laughing, making friends. Enjoying every moment of life, as only children can. But like I said, we were both forced to grow up fast after our parents were killed. Although that wasn't it -- my brother was different now. More distant, stoic, almost...colder. There was a hardness there that I had never seen in him before. And after Amoh arrived to train him in the sword style that our families shared, as our father had requested before his death, he took to it with a vengeance -- literally. I still remember one time, when I was still young - only ten or eleven, maybe - and I had asked my brother why he was training so hard. He had said only one simple word in response: revenge. Revenge against the ones who had murdered our parents and wrecked our lives: the 'Shitennou' and their organization. It was at that point that he uttered, "I'll never forgive them", and I saw something burning in his eyes -- something that terrified me. It was at that moment that I was afraid of my brother, and what he could - and WOULD - do. He was indeed different now...in fact, it was like he was someone else entirely. I didn't dare ask him how it had happened -- I didn't want to know the answer. It was the first time I was afraid of him. It would not be the last.     However, despite the typical turmoils of growing up, I was not immune to the desire to be a swordfighter. It was in my family, after all, even if it wasn't my birthright to inherit the family's sword, the Byakko no Tachi -- that honour went only to the eldest son, in this case, my brother. But I wanted to learn how to fight. I wanted to join my brother in what I saw as some sort of valiant quest, to avenge our parents' murder at the hands of evil. But I didn't think my brother would take the time to train me; he was so involved in becoming a master swordsman himself that he rarely had time for me anymore. So I was a little more than surprised when he announced he would train me to be a swordsman. I had just turned fifteen, and even though I couldn't figure out why he had decided to train me all of a sudden, I was overjoyed. As much as our vow to stay together had meant to us when we were children, I could tell that we were growing apart, day by day, and I saw this as a chance to not only become a master swordsman, but also to rekindle my relationship with my brother. Although I wasn't quite expecting the other half of the announcement: that I would be trained along with Amoh's teenage son, Kayin. Even though I was a little dismayed that training under my brother wasn't a privilege for only me alone, I was determined to make friends with the other boy I'd be training with. He may have been a gaijin, but I didn't have any close friends, and this appeared to be a good opportunity to make one. After all, as my brother had pointed out, we'd be together a lot, since we'd be constantly training together. I hoped we'd hit it off right away.     Was I ever wrong.     In my eyes, the sixteen-year old Kayin Amoh was brash, arrogant, rude, and everything else that got on my nerves. He teased me mercilessly, treated me as if I was nothing more than dirt, and although he never disrespected my brother, it was obvious he didn't like him much either. But over time, as the days of training passed, we started to get along. It's pretty hard to keep disliking someone when you're forced to face him every day. The two of us found that despite our differences, we had our similarities: while I never did truly explain to him how my parents had died, his mother had died when he was young as well, and since his father was a bounty hunter, he was never around much. I felt awful for him. I had my brother, for all it was worth. Kayin had no one. I think it was then that I really started to understand the boy behind the smirks and jeers, and gradually, we did become best friends, as I had hoped. At last, we both had someone we could truly count on -- we were like brothers, he and I. Together, the two of us training under my brother's tutelage, learning the way of the sword and enjoying ourselves greatly in the process, I was happier than I had been in a long time.     But it wasn't to last. Because during that time, I hadn't noticed how distant my brother was becoming. Kayin did, though. In fact, I think there were times when Kayin didn't trust my brother at all. I don't know why; he never seemed to have anything against him, personally. He just didn't like him. Maybe it was jealously -- after all, his father had taken the time to train the son of his best friend, but didn't train his own son. I had never asked why that was. I always just assumed it was because Amoh thought that Kayin would receive better training under my brother, with me -- though I didn't quite know why he thought that. Either way, our training ended when I was eighteen, and Kayin was nineteen. Only three years. It had been a relatively short training period, considering many of the masters trained for more than ten years, but although Kayin and I both questioned it, we didn't care -- because in all our teenage foolishness, we both considered ourselves master swordsmen by then. We had no idea that we hadn't learned everything. And I'm certain my brother knew that all along.     Kayin left soon after, returning to Scotland. He missed his home, and his father, and I couldn't blame him. I'd never been away from home in my life, but I figured I'd miss it too. After Kayin and I parted, promising that we'd see each other again, I felt empty inside. Even our promise didn't help -- I felt like I had lost my best friend. Even more so, I felt that something big was about to happen...another change, another unwelcome shift.     One involving my brother.     I got home as fast as I could, but it was too late. What I feared would happen, had: my brother had left. Gone, without even telling me where, why, or how long. But I was more surprised than ever when I found our ancient family sword, the Byakko no Tachi, that he had left behind. Along with a note that stated that I should keep the sword for myself, and that I was on my own -- and that I should now seek my destiny. But the most shocking thing that he had left behind, seemingly accidentally, was a plain white invitation -- to something called the Toshindaibukai.     Of course, I knew what the word meant -- I just didn't know what it WAS. It was a tournament, but why would my brother forsake everything, including our clan's priceless sword, his very LEGACY, to enter some fighting tournament? Without telling me or anyone else? It made no sense at all. All I could gather was that I was now alone, more so than ever before in my life. And again, it scared me.     I was devastated after he left. Things were changing rapidly again, and I didn't want, never ASKED for these shifts in my life. It scared me. During that time, I was...I don't want to say suicidal, that's too strong a word, but I was deeply depressed. Shattered. Because all through my childhood, growing up with only my brother to take care of me, I had been told that as long as the two of us stayed together, we'd be fine. Foolishly, I'd believed it. I'd clung to it, believing solely in that ideal as I grew up, that my brother would always be there for me, and me for him -- that neither of us would be alone. But I was naive. I should have seen it coming. Because as I got further into my adolescence and my brother became an adult, he told me less and less that we had to stick together, and started telling me instead that I had to learn to take care of myself, and not to depend on anybody else. It was a hard lesson to learn, and my brother had abruptly thrown it in my face. Now that I was alone, I had to learn to embrace it, and I did, almost to the extreme. I became a solitary loner, almost resembling my brother as I focused everything I had into my sword training. In the meantime, I fervently clung to the hope that my brother would come back after the tournament was over. But even after half a year, long after when the tournament should have been finished, my brother did not return. And it was then that I made a decision. For now, I would set aside my quest for vengeance. I had a new mission.     I would find my brother again, no matter what it took.     Why? Of course, I missed him. He was my brother, and as good a swordsman as he was, I had to admit that I was worried about him as well. But more than anything, I wanted an explanation. I wanted an answer -- I wanted to know why he left. He obviously knew much more than I did about our destiny, both his and mine. He knew the real reason why our parents were murdered, and just what the evil organization had wanted with us. He understood something far beyond what I ever could. And with him gone, I didn't understand where that left me -- what I was supposed to do, or what I was supposed to BE. I needed him to tell me. And for that, I needed to find him and get my answer.     I made the decision to be an adventurer. The lifestyle sounded fine to me, and besides, I couldn't stand my home anymore. There were too many memories there for me to deal with. So, taking the Byakko no Tachi as my own sword, I left Aizu for the first time in my life. I ventured off into the world, intending to find my brother, willing to forsake everything - even my life - to see him again. I had to know what he knew, at any cost. I didn't want to live without knowing my destiny anymore.     I travelled around the world for another three years. I was able to make my way by street fighting for money, and I'll admit that I enjoyed it. I had FUN. I loved fighting, and I loved becoming stronger -- I was always the more hot-blooded of the two Shinjo brothers, I can admit that, and it was obvious when I fought as well. I was always taunting and playing around, laughing and jeering, before crushing my opponents with my sword skills. I never lost. Seriously, though, I attempted to find information on my missing brother from my opponents, but I kept coming up with nothing. A few of them had heard of him, even more were terrified of him, but in the end, it was almost as if he had disappeared off the face of the Earth. And I was getting desperate. Nothing else mattered to me: I HAD to find him. Living unfulfilled was slowly killing me, day after day. But then, the event happened that would further change my life: I received an invitation to the Toshindaibukai. In my name.     Of course, I was excited, though not because it was obviously some sort of prestegious honour to be invited to one of these tournaments. It was because my brother had last been seen at a Toshindaibukai. If anywhere, that's where he would be. It was my best shot at finding him. So I headed back home, back to Aizu for the first time since I had left, in order to make a few preparations before leaving for the tournament. But I was further surprised by finding a recently-written letter from Kayin waiting for me. The news he had sent me was that he had been invited to the Toshindaibukai as well, and he figured that I must have gotten invited too, since I was gaining quite the reputation in the fighting circuits. He wanted to meet up with me again, at the tournament. But there was also some more grave news attached: the reason he was going was for vengeance. After returning home three years ago, he found his father gone. Left for the Toshindaibukai, the same as my brother. Likewise, his father hadn't returned from the tournament -- but that was because he had been killed in the final rounds, by the new champion of the Toshindaibukai. The thought crossed my mind only once, but I dismissed it as quickly as it had come. There was no way I would believe that it was my brother who had killed Amoh. He was his STUDENT, for Christ's sake. And my brother was no murderer. Not after what happened to our parents. It wouldn't make sense.     But still, I wondered...     So I left for the Toshindaibukai. I had too many questions and not enough answers. But how could I have ever known that those tournaments would leave me with more questions than ever before...     The things I saw. I saw friendship, courage, faith and even love inside and out of those battle arenas. On the darker side, I saw maliciousness, cruelty, betrayal and sacrifice. I saw a world I had never could have imagined, but it existed. And I was a part of it. What had started as just a simple tournament for myself and the others became a struggle for survival, and then that turned into a fight to save the world. And I, who had always only looked out for myself, who had never been a leader of anything, took up the role of the leader of a band of rebel fighters who were the only force standing between the evil organization, the Himitsu Kessha, and their dominance of the world. We were all pulled into it by something beyond our control, and though the five of us all had our own reasons to fight, we had to put them aside in order for a new mission: to save the world. Though some of those goals, including mine, came back to haunt us in the process...     But we overcame it all. And that was what really mattered.     The Toshindaibukai left me with questions, one that I would have never dared to ask, ones that I would have feared the answers to -- about humanity, my destiny, my brother and myself. But now, I think I can be grateful to the tournaments in many ways. They taught me invaluable lessons that I'll never forget. And now, I may have finally received my answer at last...

****************

    **Eiji. Eiji, wake up.**     The voice jolted through my mind, causing me to open my eyes instantly. I was back floating in that black void, the same one of endless darkness with a single light at the end. And for the second time, I STILL didn't know where the hell I was -- or why some voice was talking to me, with no visible speaker. I groaned a bit, still feeling the pain in my body, and said, "Where...am I...??"     **Eiji. Do you believe you've found your answer?**     "Who-??" I was shocked at the question -- whoever this voice was, how did they know about me and my goals? But all of a sudden, the voice began to sound familiar to me... "Wait...are--are you...?!"     **Answer the question.**     I was still confused by all this, but I figured I might as well answer back. "Um...I think, maybe..."     **But what was the question to which you wanted an answer?**     "My question? It was..." I paused, trying to think of the right way to phrase it. "I wanted to know what I was meant to be. What my destiny was. It seemed to be something larger than I could comprehend, and I needed someone to explain it to me. Because I..." I suddenly felt pretty silly. "I didn't want to live, not knowing what I was supposed to be, where I stood in all the crazy events in my life that were obviously happening for a reason. I wanted to understand why it was all happening to me."     **And you believed your brother could explain this?**     "Well, uh...yeah."     **Why did you think this?**     "Because...it always seemed HE understood what was going on. And I figured that he would tell me, one day, but then he left without telling me anything..." I suddenly got really frustrated. I didn't know what the hell any of this was for, why this voice kept asking me questions that I really didn't want to answer, and I wanted to get out of here. "Look, I'm tired of these questions. I want to leave, now."     **Where will you go?**     It was another simple question, but as I opened my mouth to answer, I found that I had no idea myself. Was I alive? Was I dead? "I...I don't know. Am...I dead?"     **No, you aren't dead.**     I nearly sighed in relief, but realized that I shouldn't be relieved -- I still had no way to get out of here. I shook my head in frustration and confusion. "Now, I just wish I'd never even gone to the Toshindaibukai..."     **Do you truly believe that? Think about it, Eiji: What would things have been like if you hadn't gone to the Toshindaibukai in the first place?**     So I thought. "If only I hadn't gone...then things would have been different...no, that's not right. It wouldn't have mattered if I didn't go. My destiny would have continued regardless of that, and things might have even been worse now than they already are. Also, I wouldn't have met Ellis-chan, renewed my friendship with Kayin-chan, or became friends with any of the others. Things would be different now, but not in the way that I'd want." I sighed, realized the error in my thinking. "Not after seeing all this, knowing that I can make a difference in the world, even if it means that I'd have to be the saviour of it."     **You saved the world. Wasn't that enough?**     "Yeah...yeah, I guess it was." But another question hung in the back of my mind, and I decided I might as well ask it too. "But...what does it mean, that I was never supposed to be?"     **The question is not that, but rather, what are you now?**     I was taken aback by the comment. It took me a minute to figure out what the voice was saying, but when I did, I had to really ponder the question before answering. "Well, I...I used to be only the little brother of Sho Shinjo, and nothing more. I knew he had this big destiny to fulfill, and I didn't, so I wasn't prepared when he left me, leaving the family legacy to me. Because it wasn't my place -- I didn't understand what being the Shinjo heir meant, but I did know...that I was now a part of the fate that began when my parents were killed. I never thought I would be. But...even though I didn't know what my destiny was, I guess I...managed to make it fine on my own. I went to the tournaments, fought, made friends that I never thought I'd have, and I guess I saved the world..."     **Don't you see, Eiji? You accomplished all that without knowing your destiny. Do you think you truly needed to know?**     I started to speak, but stopped. The voice was right. I hadn't known what I was supposed to be, but I got along fine all the same. "Then...is that my answer? That I have to make my own destiny for myself? Was that my answer all along?"     **Yes. You see, it truly doesn't matter what Toshinden decrees. As long as you have the will, you can create your own destiny and follow your own path.** The voice paused, and I swear I could hear it smile. **That was all your brother understood.**     I stood in silence, trying to take this all in. It made sense to me now. It didn't matter if the legend said I had a destiny to follow or not -- I had proven that I could make one for myself. I looked up, towards the sound of the voice, and said, "I think I understand."     **And that means you're ready to return.** The voice stopped for a moment, then continued. **Eiji, live your life the way you want to, and don't think you should have to depend on your brother. For you two have very, very different paths to follow, although they are your own. And I'm proud of both of you for that.**     I nodded gratefully. "Arigatou gozaimasu. And I know that now, too: that I'm never going to be my brother, so I might as well just be myself, and follow my own destiny."     **That's right. So now, go back. And give my regards to your brother.**     I smiled at that. "No problem." But as I turned to leave, the voice said one final thing, and it confused me:     **And Eiji...always remember that the true enemy lies within oneself. Never, ever forget that.**     I turned around slowly, having only enough time to say, "What do-" before the world exploded around me, and everything went black.

****************

    The first person Eiji saw when he slowly opened his eyes was his brother. And Eiji smiled.     "Otousan said to say hello."

**********


	14. Epilogue: Aftermath

**_Farewell to the legend...  
forever living on in the hearts of heroes.  
_**

**- TOH SHIN DEN III: Walking Into Ruin -**

_a Battle Arena Toshinden 3 fanfiction by Athena Asamiya and Kasumi Todoh_

  
**EPILOGUE: Aftermath**   
  
**Translations:**     _tadaima_ - I'm home     _otousan_ - father     _oi!_ - hey!   
  
  


****************

  
    "Tadaima," Eiji murmured to his hometown. Standing on a sunny hill overlooking the town of Aizu, Eiji truly felt that he was home at last, back in the town where he had grown up. After three years of fighting, three years of battling against underworld darkness, he was finally home for good. Well, in a sense. He knew he'd probably only stay in Aizu for a few weeks, at the most, then go off adventuring into the world again. Adventuring WAS his lifestyle, after all, and no amount of dark tournaments were going to change that.     _It's really over now,_ Eiji thought to himself with some relief. _Every year, we've always known that it wasn't over, but now it truly is. No more Toshindaibukai, no more evil organizations out to take over the world. Thank God._     It had only been two days since the group of fighters limped out of the crumbling ruin that was the remains of the Soshiki building. They were all exhausted, many of them wounded, but the happiness of their victory more than made up for their injuries. Like Eiji, they all knew that it was finally over, and they could get back to their lives. Everyone was returning to their usual lives, before they had been interrupted by the Soshiki: Kayin was going back to his bounty hunting and his daughter; Ellis was returning to her gypsy troupe; Sofia was rejoining the KGB; Tracy was heading back to New York to continue her policing career, as was Nagisa; and Shizuku and David were going home to an ordinary life. Shizuku was planning to legally adopt David, and now that the source of all his pain was destroyed, he was more than happy to live his life as an regular kid with a loving family, at last.     Although they all promised to stay in touch, like before, Eiji doubted that he'd see any of them again. People drifted apart, he knew, and without the tournaments, there wouldn't be much of a reason to get together. The thought of not seeing any of them again was saddening, but unless he was ever to come across any of them on his travels, he knew it was the truth. No matter what happened, they would always be his friends, and he was certain that he wouldn't ever forget them. They had all taught him a great deal, about life, friendships, tragedy, love...     "It'd all make one hell of a story..." he muttered, grinning. "Too bad no one would ever believe it."     However, he still had to consider his own life-or-death experience. He had never quite explained what had happened to him to his friends, just HOW he had managed to come back from death, because he wasn't sure he could even explain it himself. They were all just so happy to have him back, no one really cared that he couldn't explain it. All Eiji knew was that he had been given a second chance, at both life and succeeding in his destiny. And for that, he was grateful. He understood now, more than ever.     After he had "woken up" again, so to speak, at the Soshiki headquarters, Eiji had hoped to talk to his brother more, to tell him what he had realized. But typically, his brother had made another enigmatic exit, as Eiji recalled.     _As usual, I watched my brother disappear into the shadows again. But this time, he seemed even more lonely than ever. I couldn't figure out why until I saw Cupido's body, and everyone explained what had happened to her. I was sorry that she had been a victim of our cause -- she was a true ally to the end. But more importantly, I understood something important about my brother._ Eiji smiled to himself.     _He's still able to love._     Looking out over the village, he imagined that he could see to the ends of the world. And he said a solemn vow to the wind, in hopes, in knowing that it would reach his brother.     "Brother, you have your way and I have mine. But I know our paths cross, somewhere. It's our destiny. We'll meet again, oniisan. I know I'll see you again." And he made one more promise.     "I'll make a destiny for myself, otousan. I promise you."     With that, and surrounded by memories, Eiji started down the hill, to his hometown. A couple of children, playing in the front yard of their house, looked up when Eiji approached down the road. One of them burst into a huge grin, saying, "Eiji-niisan da! Eiji-niisan!!"     Eiji grinned and waved, calling, "Oiiii!!" Within a few minutes, Eiji was surrounded by the young children of Aizu, all excited and happy to see him home, for they all admired him. Eiji smiled to himself, seeing their happy faces, and knew right then that they had accomplished more than simply destroying an evil organization. _We saved the world for them, the future generation. We protected their future. And I'm going to do whatever it takes to keep on protecting the future, for children like these._     One of the youngest children looked up at Eiji hopefully. "Will you tell us a story, Eiji-niisan?"     "Yeah, a good one! Please?" another one chimed in.     _For the future..._     Eiji laughed, seeing the hopeful looks on the childrens' faces. "All right, all right. I'll tell you all a story. It begins in an airport in Tokyo, three years ago..."

  
  
  
  
  
~ _owari_ ~

  
_be kind, for everyone you meet is fighting a harder battle._  
-- Plato


End file.
